Assassin
by chinarai
Summary: "This is not over, Your Highness. Many will come and many will go, but you, My Princess, will live eternally." Zelda turned her head back and hesitated before she left the grand hall without another word. TP! Zelink - UA (Universe Alterations)
1. You Are Not The Enemy

A very quick story I wrote once in the bus while going to college. I decided to post it to prove I am alive, though it's been three weeks since I last wrote and read something, so it might take some more time before I post another chapters and stories. Maybe, I'll finally write an Adventure Time fanfic as practice.

Recently, I played and finished the game _Assassin's Creed II_ and I loved every moment of it - it was what inspired this story. This isn't complete, not yet. Once I have more ideas, I'll be adding them here - slowly, but they will be posted. As usual, Link and Zelda are from **Twilight Princess**, so you could say that it is kind of an alternative universe - or not, what suits you better!

I'm going to reply to everyone's reviews on my other stories soon! Have fun!

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**Assassin**

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Link thought the mission would be easier. Sure, getting rid of the archers placed around the castle's perimeter was an easy task, and so was killing the guards as he made his way through the well adorned hallways, heading to the King's chamber.

But as he glanced now from the shadows at the young woman dressed in crimson standing before the oak double doors, he was starting to have second thoughts.

Knowing that she already knew he was there (she was intently looking in his direction) standing partially behind the marble pillar, the blonde sidestepped it and took a few steps forward, slowly letting the dim light of the candles engulf him.

The young woman's eyebrows rose slightly, probably impressed that he stepped out in the open so easily. Link knew she would foresee his attack, he also knew she would try to stop it, and hiding wouldn't change the fact that he had underestimated her.

"Your Highness." He said after a long minute of silence and intense staring at each other.

She tilted her chin up and folded her hands neatly before her. "Assassin," she answered, eyes searching in the shadows of his hood for his eyes.

Testing the waters, Link took a step forward and felt both impressed and frustrated that she didn't move - her pose didn't even falter. "Princess, I wish no harm to you." The woman tilted her head to the side, her long and loose chestnut locks swaying with the movement. "Would you please step aside?"

"Why would I?" The princess retorted as her eyebrows drew down in an angry scowl. "So you can kill my father?"

"An eye for an eye, Your Highness." He let his muscles relax a bit, seeing as she wouldn't try to do anything against him - yet. "It is only fair."

Her expression didn't change much, yet she seemed to be enraged by his choice of words judging by the unnatural glint in her eyes. She took a tentative step forward, but didn't move much farther than that. "So it is all about revenge." The princess stated, her expression slowly shifting to a neutral one.

Link nodded his head once. "Precisely. It is also about doing the right thing. Your Highness, you know that the King, your father, isn't as good as he seems."

Retreating one step back and letting her hands fall to her sides, the Princess turned her head away. "I know what my father is and isn't."

"And you also know that killing him will bring peace to the kingdom." Their eyes met again and she still didn't know the color that glanced back at her whenever they looked at each other, she could never really tell when their gazes locked in the first place. "Why deny his death?"

"People should not be killed, Assassin." Her bare hands met before her stomach, "They should live until their rightful time comes."

He scoffed aloud, though he didn't mean to. The Princess heard it loud and clear, for the angry scowl returned to her features. Link decided to speak before her lips parted and another round of moral lessons started. "You should return some years in the past, then, Your Highness, and tell that to your father, so he would not order my family's death."

She pressed her palms together in a pitiful effort to calm down her nerves. "My father did not wish your family any harm."

"Then why were they killed?" He countered, chin raised as if defying her to answer.

"Should I know?" Her voice pitched, eyebrows shooting up as his accusation was quickly processed. "I was just a child, just like you, back then."

Link flexed his fingers and rocked back and forth on his heels, trying to ease the tension on his muscles. "It doesn't matter now, Princess. Your father killed people. He must pay."

She smiled then, albeit wickedly, and shifted her weight to her right leg as her arms crossed under her breasts. "Says the man who killed half of the councilmen and also father's ally, Ganondorf Dragmire, King of the Gerudo." One eyebrow arched higher than the other and she stated stoically, "You should pay, too."

'Damn', the assassin cursed mentally; she got him again. "Your Highness-"

"For someone who wishes for my father's death, you surely hold me high and treat me with respect."

Link closed his lips and frowned. "I hold no ill will towards you. And I respect you, more than anything."

"That is why you should do what I say." She stated, "Why kill a man who is terribly ill and bedridden?"

Tapping his fingers on his thigh, his lips curled upwards in a smirk when he realized he could counter that statement, just like she did many times before. "And why let him suffer when we can easily let him rest in peace?"

This time, she smiled, recognizing defeat. "You were never one to talk much."

Link nodded towards the door. "Then let's end it."

"Yes," she agreed and Link was left speechless at the sight of the rapier that suddenly materialized in her delicate hands, "let us end it."

The assassin instantly pulled his own sword out to block her attack. He had never battled the Princess before, and he didn't expect her to be so fast and so skilled. He jumped back when she thrusted her blade forward and tried to knock it out of her hands. The woman whirled around, the tip of her weapon cutting through the fabric of his garb, but the metal didn't even graze his skin.

Their battle progressed and it took him longer than expected to knock her rapier across the room, leaving her defenseless. Link pressed the tip of his sword lightly on her stomach, eyes carefully locked on hers.

"What?" She asked, teeth showing as she bared them in anger. "Will you not kill me?"

His face tuned severe, lips pressing in a thin line, and he made no move to lower his sword. "Why would I kill you?"

The Princess outstretched her hand and grabbed his wrist. "You always kill your opponents."

"But I will not kill you, Your Highness. You are not my enemy; you do not deserve to die." She made to pull his hand, and consequently his sword, towards her body, but Link grabbed her wrist with his other hand and prevented her from doing so. "Someone must live to bring light and peace back to this kingdom. And this person is you."

Her fingers slowly loosened around his wrist and he let her drop her hand to her side. "Why let me survive?" She asked, voice in a whisper and unbearably sweet. "Why let me survive... When I can do this!"

Link wasn't prepared for her next move. Before he knew it, she lunged forward, his blade piercing through her stomach, and her right hand tightly gripped his shoulder. It hurt more than he expected and when he felt an oddly warm sensation sliding down his arm he understood.

She pulled back, his blade sliding out of her stomach as her own slid out of his left shoulder. Link saw metallic glint on her wrist and he grunted as he gripped his shoulder. "A hidden blade."

"An eye for an eye." She gasped out, hands tightly pressed on the bleeding wound. "It is only fair."

He made to move to help her, but the Princess raised a bloody hand, silently demanding him to stop. "Go." Link stepped back, hand stretched in her direction as he hesitated. "Go do what you came here for."

"But Your Highness-"

"Just go, Assassin!" She snapped as she backed away to lean on a wall. "Just go."

He regarded her in silence, debating in his head if he should follow her orders or not. Link glanced at the door; the guards would never be coming and the King could barely feed himself, let alone escape from an assassin, from him.

Turning back to the wounded woman, Link gently picked her up and found his way through the castle until he was in the infirmary. The nurses inside the room panicked and gathered in a corner, but later obediently followed his instructions to heal the Princess, afraid that he would kill them if they denied obeying him. They were soon ushered out of the room by the Assassin himself before he sat down on the edge of the only occupied bed.

"You are leaving, are you not?" She whispered, eyes searching in the shadows for his.

"I am." He replied simply.

"You are also going to kill him before you go."

It wasn't a question, clearly, and Link heaved out a soft sigh. "I am."

The Princess closed her eyes briefly, "Very well," and she slowly raised her hand to his face. He visibly tensed and she quietly laughed at that. "Do not worry. No hidden blades this time."

She pushed his hood back, revealing his unruly dirty blonde hair and dark blue eyes. "I have always wanted to see your face." Tracing his jaw and caressing his cheeks with her fingertips, she added in another whisper, "The face of the most skilled man in this kingdom."

Her hand fell down and landed lightly on her wounded stomach. "Zelda," he said and for once she knew when their eyes met, "Take good care of this kingdom," then he jumped out the window and was gone.


	2. Many Will Come And Many Will Go

_Unsustainable_ is just too hard to write argh. I'm doing my best, but I didn't want to leave you guys waiting for too long. So here, have the second chapter of _Assassin_, a story that I like to write when I'm on the bus waiting to get to the university. Some parts, to me, are cute, yes! The third chapter is half finished, the fourth needs to be started, and I'm already planning a new fic. I still have one that's finished to post, though. But I don't know I feel like you guys won't like it.

Well, enjoy! And leave a review, please, I love knowing what you guys think!

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**Chapter Two**

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It's been one year since they met in the dark hallways of her castle, one year since she battled him to protect her father's life, one year since she failed miserably and let the assassin murder him in the dead of the night.

Princess Zelda, now twenty two years old, had finally accepted one of her many suitors' marriage proposals - against her will of course. The council forced her to marry in order to produce an heir to the throne before she could be mercilessly slaughtered just like her father. She knew it would never happen (the Assassin himself told her he would not ever kill her, he told her she must live for the sake of her people) but try as she might, she could not convince them without mentioning that he practically swore to protect her. Sure, the council knew he had taken her to the infirmary, but they did not believe he did it for a good cause.

All she wanted to do was rule the kingdom by herself. She would marry an escort that fitted her likings, have a child or two, and rule without the interference of her husband. Zelda knew very well that every man that sat on the throne would lead the kingdom to an awful condition, the same one she desperately tried to force back into the ground to free her people from the crisis. Her father was a good example, and so was her grandfather and so on. Her council was not innocent either - a bunch of old man from her grandfather's era that tried to stick to the old habits and laws. Her father, though he was not a saint, managed to change some rules, some of them even favored the people; but the council would not listen to her, a woman.

Zelda scoffed at her reflection and fixer the tiara that held her long veil in place on the crown of her head. Today was the big day and she was not looking forward to it. But she liked the dress, Zelda nodded approvingly as she twisted and turned before the mirror to glance at her back - she liked how it complimented her waist... And her rear.

She could leave her room and head to the grand hall where the celebration was being held at any time she wanted, and she would do anything to stay there all day and don't get wedded to a man she didn't like. But she needed to do it for her people and Zelda, being the selfless person that she was, grabbed the bouquet of fiery orange lilies and left the room.

She shivered suddenly and glanced around the empty hallways. Odd, the day wasn't even chilly. Her peaceful mind was slowly being engulfed by a strange sensation that crept through her body, and the turmoil inside her head only intensified as she reached the doors of the grand hall.

"Don't worry, Your Highness," one of the maids said soothingly as she gently touched the princess's trembling hand, "you'll do fine."

Zelda nodded her head absently and lifted her chin as a sign that she was ready; if only the maid knew that her sudden behavior was not caused by the unwanted marriage but by something unknown to herself.

The doors slowly opened and the crowd stood to their feet to watch the princess enter the room with an inhumanly grace and a plastic smile on her lips. She was barely halfway through the aisle when she suddenly froze and gapped at her fiancé that now had an arrow stuck in his chest. Someone cried out in the crowd and the people began to hastily make their way to the only door while Zelda ungracefully pushed them aside, trying to reach her now dead fiancé.

Looking down at the corpse, the princess didn't even need to kneel down and inspect further; instead, she merely looked up at the big stained glass above the altar and glared at the shadowed, hooded figure standing there.

Zelda fought back a snarl and managed to choke out, albeit angrily, "Even in my wedding day?!" Fisting her hands by her sides, the princess kicked away the bouquet that had fallen from her hands the moment she reached the dead prince. "Is every man in my life destined to be killed by you?!"

The Assassin uncrossed his arms and stood straight, looking down at the princess impassively. "He would not be a good king." She gaped at him and resisted the urge to pull her hair. The man hopped off the window, gracefully landing on his feet, and calmly approached the princess. "You will find a better suitor."

"A better suitor?!" She echoed, nails digging into her palms and leaving angry half moon marks. "He was the best suitor!"

"Maybe for the economy of the kingdom, but not for you, Your Highness." He said, pulling at his fingerless gloves. "Your happiness is as important as the kingdom's future."

Turning and walking briskly away from him, she said. "There is no happiness when it comes to being a princess." Zelda stopped in the middle of the aisle and turned around to face him again, "You either do what is best for the kingdom willingly or you are forced to. Feelings do not matter when your people are your priority."

Link shifted his weight and crossed his arms over his chest. "I am pretty sure, Princess, that your father married the woman he loved."

Zelda's defiant pose faltered, eyes saddening visibly at the mention of her deceased parents. "He was lucky that she was a noble woman. Were she a commoner, the marriage would never have happened."

"Did you even try to tell your council about your special one?" At the sight of her furrowed brows and confused gaze, Link added, "Surely, Your Highness must have laid your eyes on someone."

She walked forward, kicking the ruined flowers out of the way again, and closed the distance between them. Chests barely touching, Zelda could clearly see his blue eyes gazing back at her from the shadows of his forest green hood, curious as to why she was standing so close to him.

"I told you once," she started, jabbing a finger on his chest and looking both upset AND irritated, "Feelings, love, do not matter when you are a princess. You are destined to live unhappily."

The Assassin raised his hands and loosely closed his fingers around her wrist as he put his other hand on her back and pulled her closer. Now their chests were tightly pressed together and his hot breath fanned her cheekbones, which caused a light pink blush to adorn her face nicely.

Something clicked in her mind; the closeness between their bodies and her perfect wedding dress - the man holding her so close should be the noble man that had stopped breathing minutes ago, not this outlaw, not this assassin that seemed to enjoy killing important people in her life and still hold her high in a marble pedestal.

"Why kill him?" She whispered, blue eyes peeking over his shoulder and focused on the wall behind his back. The least he could do was tell her why her fiancé deserved such fate; to die in your wedding, murdered before the woman who would be his future wife and the people she adored.

But of course, she was talking to the most well known assassin in the area, and Link being who he was would not give her any explanations. "I was merely helping you, My Princess."

Zelda pushed back, putting some respectful distance between them, and gave him a hard jab on the shoulder with her free hand. "If that is what you really want," she started, eyebrows drawing down and lips pulling angrily at the corners as she practically snarled the rest of the sentence, "you can help me by staying away."

Link released her and let his hands fall to his sides, and watched in silence as the princess angrily pulled her tiara from her hair and threw it at him. He caught it easily and spared it a quick glance before his eyes returned to her retreating form.

"Sell it or something. I really do not care what you do, just get rid of it."

Seeing as she was getting closer to the open doors, he called out, "This is not over, Your Highness." Zelda stopped and Link smirked slightly, an unknown feeling making him feel oddly proud that she had stopped. "Many will come and many will go, but you, My Princess, will live eternally."

Her delicate hand rested on the door and she peeked slightly over her shoulder. "To whom?"

His lips pressed together in a thin line as he gulped and parted slightly as he breathed out, "To me."

Zelda turned her head back and hesitated before she left the grand hall without another word.


	3. Let Me Protect You Next Time

I suck at writing action scenes, even if they are short - this chapter is proof of it. Anyway, I played some Assassin's Creed III this weekend, which made me inspired enough to review this chapter before posting it. It didn't turn out as good as I wanted it to, and I apologize for that. But hopefully the next chapters will be better! I have some parts already planned, but I still don't know how this story will end...

Well, anyway, enjoy!

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**Chapter Three**

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"Welcome to Dragon Roost, Your Majesty." The royal advisor of the kingdom, Medli, greeted sweetly as the Hyrulian princess stepped out of her carriage.

Bowing her head, she replied, "Thank you, Medli," and looked around her briefly, "it will be a pleasant stay." Though Zelda wished she could spend more time outdoors, being toured about the town she never got to meet.

Medli nodded her head and motioned for Zelda to walk through the open doors, "Prince Komali is waiting for your majesty in the dining room." Zelda didn't reply verbally, but nodded once and followed the Rito inside.

Not paying attention to her surroundings (consequently not seeing the amazed looks the servants were giving her) and finding the dead silence comforting, Zelda let her shoulders relax just a little and let her mind wander. She was away from her kingdom with her advisor's girlfriend as personal bodyguard and only company; Shad stayed to watch over Hyrule and maintain everything under control if anything bad was bound to happen. Zelda only hoped that none of the old men in the council would try to overthrow a revolution and steal her throne - the kingdom already had many problems to deal with.

Ashei followed Zelda closely, yet maintaining a respectful distance between them. In delicate times like this, she couldn't trust anyone, not even her guards, and although they accompanied her in this trip, Ashei was responsible to defend her and any other nobles standing too close to her; the other guards were ordered to attack their enemy and only help the knight when extremely necessary.

They entered the dining room after a long and silent walk, and Zelda noticed Prince Komali seated at the head of the table chatting with the other noble. He gracefully stood to greet his guest, "Princess Zelda," and gently picked her hand and kissed its back, "it is a pleasure to see you again."

"Likewise, Prince Komali." Giving him a small smile, she turned to the other prince in the room when Komali moved to greet Ashei. "Prince Ralis, what a wonderful surprise."

The young Zora stood from his seat and greeted the princess and her knight, and soon the three rulers were seated and chatting as their dinner was served. After a while, they left the dining room and headed to the meeting room, where they would properly discuss about Hyrule's fragile state and try to find solutions to help the princess.

Medli and Ashei, who were walking ahead of the three rulers, suddenly stopped and motioned for them to stay still. Komali instinctively stepped before his guests and Zelda gently pulled Ralis to stand partially behind her. She quickly asked herself why trouble was always surrounding her, and why it had to follow her out of Hyrule and all the way over to Dragon Roost.

Her knight touched the hilt of her sword and quietly tiptoed forward, eyes darting in every direction as she searched for any danger. Only when an arrow flew past her and barely missed Komali's arm by a few inches, she turned and ordered, "Run!"

They reacted instantly. Komali called out for his guards as he pushed both Zelda and Ralis in the opposite direction, leading them to somewhere away from trouble. He heard as Medli pulled one of the swords from the decorative armors in the hallway and started fighting the invaders alongside Ashei.

Zelda picked up her skirts and grabbed the young Zora's wrist, urging him to run faster. The guards that were coming their way ran along the walls to give them the space needed to escape easily while some turned around and followed them, ready to shed blood if needed.

Leaving the hallways and entering the ballroom in order to escape to the backyard, the group was ambushed by more invaders; Zelda's eyes widened by a fraction of seconds before they narrowed menacingly at the sight of her own guards attacking Komali's. Said prince grabbed her hand and pulled her and Ralis out of the room and up a set of stairs, leaving his guards to deal with hers. Only when they reached the top did they notice that her guards were chasing them and the fleeing group picked up their pace in order to lose them.

"Zelda," Komali called breathlessly but kept running, "take Ralis and run in the other direction in the next corner." He gasped out for air and added, "I'll take them to the third floor. Hide in the library." The princess nodded and felt his hand squeeze reassuringly around her own before Komali released it and pushed them to the right side of the hallway, and they parted ways.

The library was the only room in that part of the hallway and Zelda was quick enough to sprint inside and lock the door behind their backs. She pulled Ralis to the back of the room and opened a single door that led to a minuscule storage room that only one person could fit inside; after hastily moving the things inside, Zelda squeezed the Zora inside, "Stay here and don't leave until I tell you to," and closed the door in his face before he could protest.

Just as she turned and rushed to grab one of the decorative swords on the wall, the library door was kicked open by the men that had vowed to protect her and her people. Zelda faced the two guards and tightened her grip on the hilt of the sword; she would protect Ralis with her life, she'd rather die trying than let them take his life without a fight.

"Your Highness," one of them called out in a mocking tone, "the castle is under attack."

She narrowed her eyes and chuckled dryly, "You don't say..."

He stepped forward, closing the distance between them, and put his fingertip on the tip of her blade. "Surrender, you aren't capable of defending yourself. Just drop the s- AH!"

Zelda quickly swung her blade and sliced his finger off, and sent him staggering backwards with a well aimed punch to his nose. "I am the one who faced the Assassin! I am more capable of defending myself than you think!"

The guard slumped forward, torn between cradling his injured hand against his chest and tending to his broken nose. His partner then stepped forward and attacked the princess, but she blocked his attack just in time. The two engaged in a battle that was short, yet intense, but eventually when the guard smirked, her blood went cold; she slowly looked over shoulder when he paused, only to see the other guard raise a dagger above his head and prepare to swing it down and carve it in her back.

Blood spluttered from his mouth then he was jerked back and thrown to the wall behind him, and in the next moment Zelda had an arm securely holding her against a firm chest as the remaining guard let out a gurgled sound before hitting the ground.

She gripped the green material, knuckles turning white, and stared at dying guard with wide eyes as she breathed shallowly and rapidly. "My Princess," Zelda shot her eyes up and stared at the shadowed face of the Assassin, "it is over."

Link wrapped his other arm around her and held her in place as her body slumped back and her muscles completely relaxed. "You did well. It was noble of you to protect Prince Ralis with your life. But," he pulled her body against his own and pushed the sweaty locks away from her face, "I do not want you to get hurt. Let me protect you next time."

"You..." She gasped out before taking in a large gulp of air, "What are you-"

Zelda was gently lifted off the ground and placed in a cushioned divan nearby. "Questions later, My Princess." The Assassin walked away from her and towards the small storage room; he knocked twice on the door, "Prince Ralis," and opened it, "you are now safe."

The young Zora stared at him with wide eyes (the Assassin was standing before him for Hylia's sake!) before he noticed the princess slumped on the couch and rushed in her direction, wanting to scold and thank her at the same time. "Princess Zelda!" Ralis picked her hand with one hand and touched her shoulder with the other; he decided to care for her wellbeing now; he'd reprimand her later, "Are you alright?"

"She is unharmed, Your Majesty, just in shock." Link walked around the divan and picked her up in his arms, then nodded towards the door, "And so is Prince Komali. He is taking care of the guards now."

Ralis placed her hand with the other on her stomach and stepped back. "Right. Let us go now, then. She needs to be tended by medics."

It didn't take too long for them to meet with Prince Komali in the hallways of his castle. After sending her knights to his dungeon, he was quickly heading to the library when he found the three approaching the top of the stairs in a fast pace. The medics accompanying the Rito tried to take Zelda from Link's arms, but he wouldn't release her, so they guided him to the infirmary; the Assassin was kicked out of the room soon after the princess was comfortably lying on a bed and one of the nurses swore he growled at them just like a wild beast.

Link met with both princes in the hallway and bowed before the both of them, giving them the proper respect they deserved. "I am deeply sorry for the attack, Your Highness," his words were directed to Komali and he turned his head in his direction to emphasize. "I am sure Princess Zelda is as sorry as I am."

Komali raised his hand, silencing the hooded Hylian, and replied. "It was not her fault, and I do not blame any of you. I know of Hyrule's delicate state," he quickly glanced at the closed door of the infirmary, "it must be hard for Princess Zelda to handle such a situation."

"She is a sole ruler," Ralis started, eyes visibly saddening although his face remained the same, "she is carrying the weight of a whole kingdom on her shoulders and her council is doing little to help her. They might even be the ones behind this attack."

They remained in silence, the princes silently pondering about the matter while Link's muscles stiffened as a brief wave of guilt washed over him. "It is my fault that she is carrying it on her shoulders and that the kingdom is still unstable." Both Komali and Ralis shifted their gaze to him and said nothing; they knew the Assassin was the one responsible for Zelda's fiancé's death – they were there and witnessed it, after all. "I could have let him live until Hyrule was established."

"It is too late to go back now." Komali spoke up as he casually slipped his hands inside his pockets, something he usually didn't do near his guests. "Hyrule will establish on its own. Princess Zelda is a strong leader; she will save the kingdom, just like you saved us today."

Link nodded and immediately bowed low in farewell, "I must go, Your Highness," then he turned and quickly left without waiting for a reply.

Ralis watched him go and waited until he was far to speak. "And he will be secretly helping her restore Hyrule, will he not?"

Placing a hand on his shoulder, Komali said nothing and kept his eyes focused on the darkened corridor the Assassin had just walked through, and then silently pushed the Zora towards the infirmary.


	4. Honor Me With A Dance

Newest chapter! I don't have much to say this time, besides the fact that I once again apologize if there are any mistakes or incoherences. Hopefully, you'll find the chapter pleasing!

A few notes:

- I'll reply to all of your reviews (old and new) on Sunday, probably. I won't do it right now because I'm very sleepy and I won't reply tomorrow either because I'll be away from my computer.

- **Hyrulean: **someone from Hyrule

- **Hylian:** descendants of Hylia

I thought I should clear this up before someone gets confused or to help someone who can't tell the difference~

Have fun! And don't forget to tell me what you think!

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**Chapter Four**

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"Why a masquerade ball? Couldn't she have chosen a regular birthday party?" Shad glanced at his girlfriend and muffled his laughter when she started pulling at the fabric of her dark blue dress. Ashei was never one to enjoy outfits that weren't her usual armor and she absolutely despised wearing high heels.

The royal advisor cleared his throat and offered, "It's her twenty second birthday. Let her have some fun. Besides," he grinned, taking her hand in his, "you look lovely."

Her answer was to glare at him until his smile faltered and Shad coughed awkwardly. Ashei pulled her hand away and crossed her arms, and looking in the other direction she grunted out. "Go do what you're paid to do, yeah?"

"Right," he agreed and smoothed his hands on his attire, "she must be ready by now."

Outside the grand hall, Zelda smiled widely as she glanced at her reflection. Fingers brushing on the black lace of her mask, she found herself to be truly happy after a long time. The crisis was finally buried deep into the past, her people were happy with her rule and she was glad they would live normally again.

Her councilmen, the source of a lot of problems in the past, were replaced after long meetings that ended in at least one of them getting too exalted to continue. After the population met up in her throne room and demanded they were replaced by younger people, the council finally agreed and reluctantly let ten vacant chairs in the meeting room waiting for new users. It was better this way, they admitted; they would never drag Hyrule back to its old roots, not with Zelda in charge. Zelda remembered, though, that one of the commoners mentioned something about their leader, who did not attend to their "meeting" that day. The princess also noticed from the corner of her eyes that one of the councilmen visibly tensed and another one paled at the mention of the word "leader".

Shrugging, she approached the doors when she heard Shad announcing her name and she smiled even more when the guards opened them. Zelda strode in, red tainted lips pulled into a pleasant, truthful smile and her gaze jumped from face to face as she tried to recognize everyone. The princess met with Prince Komali, who would be dancing with her to replace her father, in the center of the room and they simultaneously bowed to each other. Komali took her hand and they readied themselves, and the music group in the far left wall began to play.

As they moved and whispered few words to each other, Zelda let her eyes wander around again. She recognized both Shad, with a purple mask, and Ashei, with a blue one, standing near their table. He obviously wanted to dance but there was no way Ashei would dance with him. She caught sight of Queen Rutela and her son, Prince Ralis, slowly joining her and Komali in their dance. Both Zoras wore mother of pearl colored masks and moved with grace, encouraging the other guests to start dancing too. Zelda liked it that way; she liked when people danced along with her instead of just standing and watching.

Among the people twirling around, the Hyrulian princess caught sight of a man wearing a forest green colored mask, and her eyes widened and lips parted slightly in shock. Just then, Komali dipped her and Zelda snapped out of her reverie just in time to raise her hand elegantly into the air, covering up her slight slip.

"Is something wrong?" The Rito asked quietly and they bowed in thanks when the people began to applaud.

She took the hand he offered her and quickly whispered as he led her to both Zoras standing nearby. "I thought I saw something."

"Zelda!" Queen Rutela wrapped her arms around the young princess as soon as she released the prince's hand. "How you have grown, twenty two already."

The princess smiled and returned the hug, "It has been some time, Queen Rutela."

With a nod, the queen replied, "We will have plenty of time to catch up. I will not keep you here any longer, go greet the other guests."

"I will. Prince Ralis," Zelda nodded once she caught his gaze, "you are my next partner in a dance." He simply nodded, a small smile on his lips, and she excused herself and left.

Zelda simultaneously greeted her guests and searched for the green masked man, but he was nowhere to be found. Did she imagine him? Was she going crazy? That twist in her stomach told her otherwise; he was in her castle, the Assassin was attending to her birthday party and someone was going to die. The princess gulped, smiled at whatever compliment the noble just said and walked away.

After wandering about the grand hall and talking to all guests at least twice, she made her way to her table and sat in the middle, with Shad comfortably seated beside her. Ashei was probably away in the washroom, cursing the goddesses and the party she wanted to attend to but clearly didn't want to dress up to.

Her advisor, now head of her new council, turned and smiled widely at her, but said nothing; and Zelda studied his face briefly before saying, "You are not wearing your glasses."

"Reading glasses, Your Highness, their absence does not bother me at all tonight."

Lips twisting in a smirk as she reached for her flute of champagne, Zelda was about to sip the drink when a hand was suddenly placed before her, palm turned upwards in a sign of invitation. "Your Majesty," she slowly looked up and had trouble to recognize the face under the exquisite mask, "would you honor me with a dance?"

She took a quick sip to wet her dry throat and took his hand with a polite smile. The noble held her hand as they walked towards the end of the table, each on one side, and he boldly pulled her closer when there weren't any obstacles between them. He led her to the center of the room and the guests backed away to give them space to walk, for respect or for fear of his strangely weird mask, Zelda couldn't tell.

"You look stunning tonight, Your Highness." He spun her around once, trying to insert them halfway through the dance, "That is a nice mask you have here."

Zelda smiled slightly, "Thank you," and eyed the mask he was wearing briefly. Was it heart shaped? And with... Were those spikes? Horns? It was purple and painted oddly, it made her remember of some tribal paintings in ancient caves found in Termina. And the mask seemed to have its own eyes, and Zelda fought back the urge to shudder at the fiery orange orbs with tints of yellow and green. "Yours is very nice too, My Lord. Very unique." She decided to say with a polite smile on her lips.

Since the mask covered his entire face, the princess had no idea if he was pleased by her comment or not. "Thank you. It was passed down from my great grandfather to his son, and so on."

Mentally sighing in relief, Zelda was spun around twice this time before she met his gaze again. "Mind telling me more, sir?"

He nodded and pulled her closer. "My great grandfather was a salesman. He sold masks of all kinds, except for this one. It is special; he used to say that whoever wears this will be possessed by a great evil force." The princess blinked her eyes rapidly to force them back into their original size; if it was dangerous, why was he using it? "He was mentally unstable, though, so no one in Termina believed in it."

So he truly was from Termina. The Duke from Termina, one of the most powerful men and the one that sought out for her hand in marriage the most.  
Her lips parted to speak, but the song ended and a hand was placed on the duke's shoulder before he could drag her into another round. "My Lord, My Princess," at that title, her eyes snapped up to meet the gaze of the green masked man, "I am deeply sorry for interrupting, but I was wondering if perhaps the lady would like to dance with me."

The Duke eyed the man warily, as if trying to decide if he should be there or not, but stepped back anyways and silently walked away. Zelda was frozen while the man approached her and placed both of his hands on her waist, and pressed her against his body. "Honor me with a dance, My Princess?"

His whisper made her shiver and he began moving before she could even answer his question. Words were not spoken for a few heartbeats, but soon Zelda looked at his face, only to find him already looking at her. "Who is going to die today?"

"I am afraid I do not understand what you are implying," was his answer as he guided her around. Zelda slowly breathed out, "The only person that I can imagine wearing forest green is the Assassin."  
He chuckled, slowly tightening the grip of his fingers around her hand. "How can you be so sure that I am the assassin you seek?"

"I am not seeking anyone." She retorted and lightly narrowed her eyes. "It was just a guess."

His smirk was evident and it only meant one thing: she was right. Link in response tightened the grip of his other hand on her waist and slowly moved it to the small of her back. "Very observant, Your Highness."

She rolled her eyes and he thought that maybe she was getting a little too comfortable around his presence. "It is my birthday. You could wear anything that is not a different shade of your favorite color for a change."

"Maybe my favorite color is not green. But I think green and black match nicely, do you not think so, Your Highness?"

Zelda stared at him for a moment, "Were you spying on me?"

He gasped, seemingly feeling insulted. "I would never do such a thing. I think, however," Link looked at her to watch her expression, "that the purple dress was nice too."

Her cheeks heated up and she prayed that they were not in the same shade of her red lipstick. "Y-You did not answer my other question, Assassin."

Link spun her once, "Not so loud, they are going to hear you," and pulled her close enough so that he could whisper in her ear, "The Duke of Termina cannot breathe for much longer anymore. His time is coming."

That was enough to make her pale, the color draining from her face almost completely. "Today?" She inquired in a small voice as she focused her gaze on the floor, something she knew she shouldn't while dancing, or at any other time.

"No, not today." Zelda looked up and met his eyes, "I have already ruined a special day for you. I am not going to ruin another."

She smiled lightly and tentatively slid her hands that were resting on his palm and shoulder to his chest. His lips curled in a gentle smile before he encircled his arms completely around her form and held her close to him. Zelda let her forehead lie comfortably on his shoulder as they lazily swayed before she asked, "Do we have the same height or am I taller than you?" The Assassin coughed, "Perhaps you would like to have a drink right now, My Princess?" Zelda pulled back and Link hated how the corner of her lips tilted up in an amused smile; he wanted to wipe it off with kisses. "I am taller than you." "And older too." He informed as he circled his fingers around her hands, cradling them against his chest. "You are two years older, after all. You may have not noticed," Link noticed as she unconsciously leaned her head forward, bringing her face closer to his, "but I was shorter when we first met." "Is it even possible?" Her tone reflected her amused smile, it was playful even, and it only confirmed his suspicion that she was indeed getting too comfortable around him. "Could you really be shorter?"

He chuckled awkwardly, "Would you like some wine or champagne, Your Majesty?" She let him guide her to her table that was now empty; Shad and Ashei were nowhere to be found, the former probably left in search for the latter. "Perhaps goat milk from Ordon, hm?"

Link pulled her chair and waited until she was seated to claim the seat beside hers, the one in which Shad previously was seated. "We ran out of goat milk a long time ago. I wonder why nobody in the kitchen bothered to provide more to the castle."

A servant passed by their table and the Assassin was quick to snatch two flutes of wine from their tray; he offered one to the princess who took it with a grateful smile before taking a sip. "The milk tastes better when drank right after it is milked."

Zelda put her half empty flute on the tabletop and turned to meet his gaze. "I will keep that in mind." Letting her eyes wander about the grand hall while her companion enjoyed his drink silently, her eyes widened in the slightest when she saw both Queen Rutela and Prince Ralis talking to Shad and Ashei. "Oh, I just remembered I promised Prince Ralis that he would be my next dance partner." She also mused to herself how she was surprised that her knight hadn't retired to bed yet.

"He was going to dance with you before you danced with the Duke of Termina?" The princess nodded and leaned back on her chair as she lightly bit her bottom lip. "Well, I guess he would not mind it if you danced with me again before finally dancing with him."

She looked at him again with a wide smile plastered on her lips. Link took the hand she offered him and he helped her up before leading her to the center of the room again.


	5. So You Now Know My Name

Sorry for not posting this chapter last week, I had a very important test last Friday.

But good news! I'm currently writing the ninth chapter! And I'm going to add the second genre as drama, because it's fitting.

**Note:** Kalel is Rusl's daughter, Colin's sister. Uli was pregnant during the events of Twilight Princess, remember?

I hope you enjoy this chapter as much as I do :) And _Generala_, the scene I promised you is coming ;)

Have fun! And don't forget to review!

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**Chapter Five**

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Zelda was, to say the least, amazed by the nature that surrounded her. The tall trees with their leaves of every imaginable shade of green cast a cool shade around her, cooling down hers and her stallion's temperature. She let her knights stand guard on the gate that connected the Deep Woods to the southern portion of Hyrule Field. It was the only entrance, as well as the only exit, to Ordon Province and it was obvious that if someone were planning to attack her there, they would have to pass through her guards first.

The only person she thought that was skilled enough to go through the woods was the man who took away her father's life. She trusted his words that he wouldn't be the one to take away her own.

Her horse halted and neighed, hitting its hooves on the earthy ground as it protested. Zelda lowered her gaze from the morning sky to the hanging bridge before her, and swallowed. She nudged her stallion forward anyway; there were people living here and if the bridge didn't fall down yet, it wouldn't so soon. Her horse was as cautious as she was, but granted they made it through in one piece; it may have swayed slightly once or twice, which made her heart beat as fast as a hummingbird's, but besides that it went fine.

She was more than glad when the horse's hooves touched solid ground - it was too for it neighed happily - and Zelda urged it to move a little bit faster than before. They passed through two clearings before they entered a narrow pathway and emerged in the small village of Ordon. She dismounted her horse, took it by the reins and walked forward, striding in the direction of one big bald man who seemed to be the only one in sight. He stopped midstep as he crossed a small wooden bridge over a stream of water and glanced from her toes to the top of her head twice before his eyes focused on the crown in her head.

"Princess Zelda," he approached her quickly, "what an honor to have you here!"

She smiled and raised a hand before he could bow to her. "The pleasure is mine, Mayor Bo. I was passing by Kakariko and decided to visit Ordon as well."

Bo clasped his hands together and rubbed them, an obvious sign of anxiety that didn't go unnoticed by her. "The last time you've been here you were just a small kid, I remember well."

Her horse snorted and her hand immediately flew up to pet it on the back of its neck, giving the attention it wanted. "I am here to run some errands, too."

"Ah, well, you see Your Highness," he started, lifting a hand to scratch the side o his head, "I was going to meet Hanch now... I can talk to him later though."

The princess shifted her eyes back to his face and nodded once. "There is no need to. In that case, I think someone that works at the ranch will do. Where may I find him or her?"

He internally sighed in relief; having the Princess of Hyrule suddenly over for a brief visit and having to let her waiting while he discussed with Hanch about the wolf pack wandering in the woods wasn't the best way to treat her, especially when this was the first time she visited after around fifteen years. "Since Fado is out of town, you should ask for Link instead. Would you like me to take you to the ranch?"

"I believe it will not be necessary, thank you." She already figured that to get to the ranch you had to follow the only path with hooves imprinted on the ground. "I just have to follow the path, right?"

"Yes, right." He smiled and stepped aside, "Make yourself at home, Lady Zelda." She giggled lightly at this and pulled her horse by the reins as she made her way towards the ranch.

As she approached the ranch, unfamiliar sounds reached her ears and Zelda associated them with the goats that produced the best milk in all Hyrule. It was a shame, though, that they didn't give Ordon as much fame as the Goron Mines gave to Kakariko. She knew you couldn't compare milk to precious stones and well crafted jewels, but in her eyes the milk, for its simplicity, outshone the shiny accessories produced by rock eating beings.

Her horse neighed once again and Zelda came to a stop just outside the closed gates. She watched, amused, as the herder circled around at least twenty goats, thus making them run towards the wooden pen where they resided. The man dismounted his horse to close the doors, and now that he wasn't moving around Zelda was able to get a better view of his features.

She smirked. "Who would have guessed that the very man who killed Ganondorf herders goats in his free time?"

The man turned, smirked once he recognized her and proceeded to approach her to open the gate. "Who would have guessed that one day the Princess of Hyrule would come after a goat herder, of Ordon of all places?"

Zelda guided her horse through the now open gates and released the reins, letting it join the other horse. "Do not say that, Link, Ordon is an amazing place."

"So you now know my name." He commented as he trailed behind her and wiped his hands on his pants.

He saw her wearing an expression different than any other he had seen, but the glint in her eye immediately gave away that this was the face she did when she was about to tease someone. Her eyebrows were arched up and her mouth was somewhere between a pout and a constrained smile; it was different, but he liked it nonetheless. "Well, since you did not bother to tell me your name, someone had to."

Link crossed his arms and tilted his chin up to match her teasing expression, but nothing came to mind for him to say. He eventually dropped his arms to his sides and approached her; Zelda, on the other hand, held her breath as he came to stand very close to her. "Well, why would her Royal Highness go after a goat herder that likes to assassin people?" His fingertips slowly trailed up her bare arms and the princess suddenly wondered why she had to pick the gloves that reached her wrists only instead of the ones that covered a great amount of skin. "Or an assassin that likes to herd some goats?"

Her breath hitched and her fingers softly grazed the fabric of his shirt. "I came here for the fresh goat milk you spoke so highly of on my birthday party," she said, voice just slightly lower than usual.

"So I am not the reason?" He murmured in her ears as he held her in place by the shoulders.

She hummed, "I fear not," and moved her glance up to look at him. "Oh, only a month and you are slightly taller than me."

The assassin chuckled, the sound making her shiver at the closeness of the sound to her ear and something stirred inside of her. "I am still a little short for a nineteen years old goat herder assassin."

Link felt as her nails lifted the hem of his shirt and barely grazed his skin as she raised her hands to place them on his chest. "You said you were two years younger only."

"Three more months, My Princess, and then you can make your move."

At that she leaned forward, her breath fanned his lips nicely and Link gave his all not to close the undesirable gap between their faces. She breathed out, "Who said I want to make a move on you?" And pulled back with a giggle, stepping back to put some space between their bodies.

It was hard for him not to growl out in frustration, so instead he ran a hand through his unruly dark golden locks and lightly pulled at them. "That's playing dirty, Zelda."

She whipped her head in his direction, "What did you just call me?"

"Oh shit," he cursed under his breath before both his hands ruffled his hair roughly, "I am sorry, Your Highness, that was disrespectful of me."

She laughed then, the sound so unknown to his ears that he felt compelled to look up and associate her laughter to her crinkled eyes and wide grin. "It's fine, really!" Zelda gasped in for breath after a moment or two, "Formalities can be tiring sometimes. I'm glad that you feel, ah, comfortable enough around me I call me by my name."

He raised his eyebrows and crossed his arms, "Well, I hope that from now on you'll drop the formalities as well."

"Only when we're alone, though. You know, I have an image to keep and all that stuff." Link chuckled at this and she quickly changed subjects before he could start again, "Why did you lock the goats away? It's only midday."

Link took her hand this time and ran his thumb gently on her knuckles, "One of the goats ran away just before you arrived. I had to gather them before another one could escape."

"I hope it doesn't get hurt." She whispered and kept her eyes focused on his fingers.

The Assassin moved his hand and laced his fingers with hers, though he could not say nor do anything more for he heard urgent footsteps approaching and had to drop her hand with a sorrowful gaze. "Link!" A man Zelda hadn't seen before was running in their direction, "Link, the kids went into the woods again!"

He turned and met his worried gaze, "Again?" And he was moving away from Zelda with each passing second. "Stay with Kalel and keep Princess Zelda entertained while I'm away."

Both Zelda and the nameless man watched as he mounted his horse and galloped away in a matter of seconds, leaving them alone with a heavy silence in the air. Her horse neighed in protest and made to follow the Assassin, but the man was quick enough to grab its reins and keep it in place. "Not so fast, boy, Epona is no match for you."

"Princess," he addressed her at the same time he offered her the reins, "I'm Rusl and I'm afraid I won't be able to keep you entertained for too long in this small town," he finished his sentence with an apologetic chuckle.

She smiled when he bowed shallowly and petted her horse's mane lovingly as she spoke, "We can start by drinking freshly milked goat milk, Rusl."

"Nice choice, Your Grace," he clapped his hands once and motioned her to follow him towards the pen.

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It was already mid afternoon by the time Link convinced the kids to stop playing hide and seek with him and drag them back to the village. He sheathed the sword he had left near the ladder of his house for emergencies and pressed his fingers on his temples, praying that Zelda didn't die out of boredom.

She didn't, he was glad to say so; she was very much alive and mounted on her horse as she rode towards the hanging bridge he and the kids were currently crossing. He smiled apologetically at her and pulled Epona by the reins so they could get to her faster.

Before he could say something, though, one of the kids spoke up, "Are you Link's girlfriend?"

"Talo!" Link hissed and wished he was wearing his hood so he could hide his burning face.

Zelda merely brought a hand to her lips and giggled against her fingers before she motioned to the crown on her head with the same hand. "I am the Princess of Hyrule, and his friend."

"Princess?" The only girl in the group asked, eyes shining and hands clasped tightly before her chest. "When did you meet him, and Link, why didn't you tell us?" She directed the last question to him, looking in his direction with a glare to emphasize.

"Yeah! Why?" The same kid from earlier, Talo, asked loudly as he pumped his little fist into the air.

Link pointed at them, eyebrows drawn down as his voice faked indignation, "I don't have to say every little detail about my life to some kids!"

"She's the reason why you're always traveling, isn't she?" The girl inquired as she placed her hands on her hips. He looked up to the kids perched on Epona's back and said nothing. "Isn't she, Link?" She pressed further, now crossing her arms over her chest.

"Partially." Zelda answered which caught the attention of Link, the two talkative kids and the two quiet ones. "He helps me at the castle sometimes, with the horses in the stables. He also delivers goat milk to Castle Town, as well as Hyrule Castle."

"Link never said he visited the castle." The quiet blond kid in the back spoke up in an equally quiet voice. The Assassin met his gaze and smiled slightly with a shrug of his shoulders.

The princess pulled at the reins of her stallion so it would stay in place and would not approach Epona. "Link is a man full of secrets. I've been kept in the dark too, kids." Link pierced her with a playful glare and Zelda stuck out the tip of her tongue at him. "Well, I must get going. I have to be back at Castle Town before evening approaches."

Link petted her horse's nose briefly as he looked up at her. "I'm sorry I couldn't stay with you today."

"It's fine." She grinned, "I requested you to be the one who's going to deliver more milk in a few days. Stay over for tea and," she moved her gaze to the kids that were intently watching and listening to her, "bring the kids too."

Three of the four kids were clearly pleased by her invitation; the youngest one kept silent. Zelda shifted her gaze back at him and mouthed a goodbye to which he responded with the most beautiful smile she had seen him give her so far. The princess kicked her heels and urged the stallion to trot forward and carefully cross the bridge.

"Yeah, we're going to visit Link's girlfriend's castle!"

"Be quiet, Talo! And off my horse, the four of you!"

Zelda laughed openly and urged her horse to trot faster towards Hyrule Field as the kids groaned and hopped off Epona's back.


	6. Puberty Can Do Amazing Things

The word count in this chapter is bigger than the others due to some guest reviews that I'll reply in the end of the Author's Notes.

I originally intended on posting it last thursday, but I noticed it had around 1700 words only; now it has 2130. Some chapters won't be very long, but I'll make it up to you later.

So, _Generala_, here is the scene you were waiting for!_  
_

**- Guest Reviews**

_- Zelink005:I think I'm dying of cuteness. I like how they act so much like a couple but aren't quiet one yet, it's a bit frustrating too xD Oh well, continue like that :))_  
I know it's frustrating (I get frustrated too when reviewing omfg) everything in due time haha_- Gothicwings94:You're really good at writing! I hope that's not weird but I just wanted you to know._  
It's not weird at all! I'm flattered! Thank you! :D_- I feel that the relationship blooming between link and zelda is progressing very naturally. I also feel that there is great chemistry between the two due to their fairly different personalities and lifestyles. This chapter was great and i hope you update soon._  
Thanks! These differences are what make TP Zelink in general so unique, in my opinion. I'm working on the 'update soon' part hehehe

For those who are reading since the day the first chapter was posted and for those who are just now reading, I hope you enjoy this chapter!

Have fun and don't forget to tell me what you think!

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**Chapter Six **

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The streets of Castle Town were bursting with people, sellers and costumers talked constantly, the sound buzzing in his ears as Link tried to keep the four kids in sight. It was fairly easy considering that both Malo and Colin used to behave quite nicely and that Beth was too preoccupied with her new outfit to wander around the market. Talo, though, stopped at every stand to glance at everything, forcing Link to stop and drag him back to the group.

After the fifth time, Link quietly scolded him and explained that the longer it took them to get to the castle, the less time they would have to see everything there. He really didn't mind the fact that Zelda invited the kids to visit her castle with him, but he did mind the fact that there was the possibility that they would barely talk again.

They approached the gates, after what seemed like hours and innumerous tugs on Talo's shirt, guarded by an armed knight. Link looked at the kids and gave a curt nod, silently telling them to behave, and walked ahead of them to talk to the guard.

"State your name and your business here," the man grumbled before Link could even part his lips.

He lightly furrowed his brow, hands itching to punch the guy square in the face; guards, always so full of themselves because of their titles. Link swallowed, his lips pressing into a thin line briefly, and he calmly introduced himself despite the rude manner the man addressed him. "I'm Link, these are my friends," he motioned to the kids who stared back at the guard when he looked at them, "and we're from Ordon. We're Princess Zelda's guests."

"Guests?" He repeated and proceeded to laugh loudly before the group. Link made a face at the spit that flew out the man's mouth and fell on his covered shoulder, but kept his cool. "I didn't know the princess was friends with a babysitter."

"Hey!" Talo protested and marched forward, only to be stopped by the hand Link placed on his chest.

The guard snorted at the little kid's attempt, "Come and get me, kid." He taunted, hitting his closed fist on his guarded chest twice.

"Picking fights with kids, Golen?" The knight turned around and snorted once again at the sight of Ashei calmly approaching them. Link quickly pushed Talo back and fixed them with a look that clearly said to stay out of trouble "I thought you were better than that, yeah?"

Golen crossed his arms over his chest and replied with a smirk on his face, "Well, if it's not the man-lady-thing that follows her Royal Highness around."

"And yet I can do more with a sword than you wish you could." She stopped before him and propped a closed fist on her hip, looking at him with such a bored gaze that Link wondered if she was even bothered by the whole 'man-lady-thing' thing.

Behind Golen, Beth and Talo snickered, Colin covered his mouth with his hands and Malo looked like he had always looked: bored out of his mind. "Back off, yeah?" The female knight ordered as she roughly pushed him back with her left hand, causing the bigger knight to stumble backwards. "Let me take care of them."

He glared at her and stalked away quietly before a wave of profanities was heard after he turned around in a corner. The kids laughed aloud then and the assassin even let a slight smirk touch his lips. "Ashei," Link called out, "it's been some time."

She clicked her tongue and looked back at him, Golen long forgotten. "You seem to like to get into trouble, yeah?" Ashei cocked her head back and took a step back, "Come, she's waiting."

The kids were behaving quite well as they made their way inside and through the castle. They were too awed by the castle, by the decorative armors, by the paintings on the wall, by the carpets even, to even think of running off; Link was glad that he wouldn't have to explain to Zelda how one of her expensive vases was broken by a bunch of kids, thanks whatever it was that kept them within his sight and out of trouble.

After many set of stairs and different rooms, Ashei led them to the last stairs they'd have to climb, the largest one, which was out in the open; how odd, he thought but shrugged it off. Wind whipped around wildly, making their hair stand in every direction and causing Beth to shriek in exasperation; how could she meet the princess now that her dress was wrinkled and her hair was a mess?

Unceremoniously, Ashei opened the doors and allowed the group to enter the room where the princess was. The second thing Link noticed after the statue of the three Golden Goddesses circling the Triforce was the quiet laughter coming from the throne under it. He watched, through narrowed eyes, as Zelda gently laid her hand on the man's shoulder and whispered a reply to whatever he had said. His jaw clenched, his hands rolled into fists and finally Zelda raised her eyes from the man to look directly at him.

Every muscle in his body relaxed instantly and they remained so even after she and Ashei started sharing a couple words. The man, her loyal friend and advisor who was sitting beside her at the table months ago in her birthday party, slowly descended the steps and came to stand near the knight. Their exchange of words went unnoticed by him, as well as the moment when Zelda directed her words towards the kids. Ashei led the overly excited kids and the man (_Shad_, he remembered) back through the only visible door in the room. "You can stop staring now, Link."

He shook his head and smiled teasingly, "You're a sight to be stared at, Zelda."

She waved her hand, her smile never leaving her lips. "Did you leave the milk where you were supposed to?"

"I did," he replied as he swung his arms around briefly, "I did everything correctly."

Her answer was a hum and a quiet chuckle as she rose from her seat. "You spy on me and yet you're jealous of Shad." She commented, stifling a laugh afterwards by touching her knuckles to her lips. Her eyes studied his face and she bit her knuckles at the sight of his barely shaved beard; he looked older, wiser, and even more attractive than she'd like to admit.

Link scoffed, "Why would I be jealous of him of all people?" Right now, he envied her knuckles more than anything else.

"Because he gets paid to follow me around." Zelda replied nonchalantly as she slowly picked at her fallen hairs that clung to her outfit.

Slipping his hands in his pockets, the Assassin waited until she looked up at him to counter, "I'd do that for free," he replied with a smirk.

Zelda was at a loss of words as her hands dropped to her sides and she gaped at him. Link was content with the effect it caused on her; he shifted his weight and it snapped the princess back into reality. She adjusted her long gloves and touched her chin with her fingertips, "Would you like a tour around the castle or you've already seen it all?"

"Well," he started and approached her, laying a hand on her shoulder as the other held her hand at his chest level, "I haven't seen your chambers yet."

The princess laughed and pushed him, a bit roughly for a princess, away from her. Link's amused eyes watched as she dusted her hands and moved towards the back of her throne. "You won't be visiting it today," she called over her shoulder while her hands grabbed two specific wall ornaments and pulled them to her right, opening a secret passage.

He followed her inside and closed the hidden door for her, "So this means I'll visit it someday?"

His question was answered with silence. Link trailed after her, not really caring about where she was taking him. He was glad he was having the opportunity to spend some time with her, alone. No goats escaping from the ranch, no kids wandering into the woods; just the two of them, walking in silence in a secret passage most likely used by knights and servants. "Taking me to your guards so they can kill me?" Link inquired while he looked at her face over her shoulder.

"If I were trying to get revenge over my father's death," she glanced over her shoulder to finish, "I'd do it with my own hands."

Link closed his mouth and held in a choke that threatened to escape. Zelda obviously wasn't one of those princesses who were helpless and spoiled, and now he could see it clearly – which also explained why the touch of her hands was a bit too hard when she pushed him away. The day he confronted her was proof of it too, as well as the day she fought her own guards to save Prince Ralis' life. "And why won't you avenge his death?"

"Killing you won't bring him back," she answered, "And I don't think my father would be thrilled about it."

She suddenly found herself trapped between the rough wall and his chest, hands pinned above her head. Zelda tilted her chin up, silently questioning his actions, but Link ignored it. "You, certainly, must have at least a little bit of ill will towards me."

The way he breathed near her collarbones made her skin tickle and there was that odd feeling stirring inside of her again. She felt his breath trail up towards her ear where his lips softly descended up and left a chaste kiss. "I may feel something about you, yes." Zelda tried to keep her voice unaffected by his actions, but she couldn't control the rhythm in which her heart beat.

Link trailed his lips on her jaw, heard as she licked her lips and planted a small kiss on her chin before letting his lips a breath apart from hers. "And what is it?"

He heard as her lips parted again, as she sucked in a breath, and then her reply left her mouth in a whisper, "I'm not telling you," and she pushed him away yet again.

Zelda didn't have time to move far from him for his hands sneaked around her waist and pulled her to him, crushing her chest against his. She looked up to meet his eyes, realization hitting her a second after. "You're taller," she pointed out, noticing how he was at least one inch taller than her.

The assassin hummed and ran his hands on the curve of her waist before he replied, "Puberty can do amazing things." He noticed how the amused glint in her eyes slowly diminished, being replaced by a fog of feelings that made her blue-grey irises noticeably darker.

She smiled slyly, hands trailing up his chest and stopping on his shoulders, the grip strong, yet gentle. "Indeed it can."

Her voice was a mere whisper and the kiss she planted on his chin was so soft he barely could feel it. Link groaned, tightened the grip of his hands around her waist and pushed her back towards the rough stone wall. Her name left his lips, quiet and distorted by yet another groan, his voice laced with something she could not pin point. But she loved it; she loved how he made it sound, she loved how her limbs grew cold and her core grew warmer, she loved the shiver that went up and down her spine.

She loved all of it.

She loved all of him.

Then his lips were on hers, unmoving and strong, claiming them as his and his only. They remained like that, each one listening to their heartbeats pound loudly in their ears, until Link pulled away and breathed an apologize, though he remained rooted to the spot. Zelda smiled, running her hands up his neck and grabbing his unruly hair to pull his face down and place a kiss on his forehead, lips lingering on his skin longer than necessary.

His lips parted in a wide grin and Link dipped his head forward to kiss her again. This time, though, Zelda placed her fingers on his lips and he opened his eyes to stare at her questioningly. "Ashei and Shad will suspect if we don't get to the tea room soon."

Link hummed, lacing his fingers with hers, "We'll continue some other time then."

Zelda smiled, craned her head up to kiss his cheek, the stubble tickling her lips, and guided him through the dimly lit passageway.


	7. It Could Have Been You

So it seems that by popular demand, Link will have to shave that beard!

And also, this is the seventh chapter, we are halfway through the story. It saddens me to say that I'll be probably finishing the last chapter within the next week, so, if I update regularly every week, in seven weeks this story will be finished.

The Assassin's Creed franchise has six or so main games and I really want to write five more Assassin themed stories - and this is when I tell you the good news. I'll be reusing an old fanfic that I mentioned a lot of times before but I never posted and I'm going to adapt it into one of my Assassin series! So you might as well expect one more from me hopefully soon!

If you'd like, I added a link to my headcanons page on tumblr! I'll be frequently updating it!

**- Guest Reviews**

_- Zelink005:Oh god...Link with a barely shaved beard...so sexy ! Sorry, I need to calm my hormones xD Anyway, things are getting even more interesting between them ! Keep it up_!

Sadly, Link had to give up on the look ): And it's ok, everyone's hormones go in a frenzy when Link's name is mentioned xD

_-Anon:please don't have link a beard! And what the hell was wrong with that guard?! lol_

Shaved it! Ugh, guards are just so full of themselves thinking they are better than assassins disguised as ranch boys

**- End of Reviews**

And so I leave you to enjoy this new chapter! Have fun and don't forget to tell me what you think!

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**Chapter Seven**

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The news were unexpected, obviously, and they left Zelda in a state of shock for around five minutes until Shad snapped her out of her terrible reverie and urged her out of the throne room. The princess had only less than fifteen minutes to change out of her well elaborated dresses and put on a pair a trousers and a long sleeved linen shirt under her blue riding tunic, and a long cloak to conceal her features as well as her crown.

She was followed by Ashei and her lover as she half walked half jogged her way down the numerous stairs, out the reception hall and through the gardens. Her loyal knight helped her climb onto her stallion's back, and looked up at the princess with a slightly worried expression, "Are you sure you don't want me to come with you, Your Majesty?"

Zelda nodded, pulled the reins to keep the horse in place though she just wanted to leave as quickly as she could. "Your presence will only give away it is me who you are accompanying." She hurriedly glanced at the gates, heart pounding in desperation and grief.

"We will go later this afternoon, then." Shad offered helpfully as he laid his hand on Ashei's shoulder and pulled her away from the horse, "Go, Your Highness, he needs you." They watched as she breathed out an agreement and urged her horse to trot away as quickly as it could, leaving through the eastern gate of Castle Town.

The midmorning sun shone bright and hot above her, her cloak only made her feel hotter and more restless as sweat slowly trailed down her brow and cheeks. She was only in the middle of the path that led her to the northern portion of Hyrule Field, mentally counting seconds to keep track of the time. One thousand and eighty seconds, eighteen minutes and only now she was nearing the end of the path and seeing the rocky mountains that hid the secret trail to her destination.

She reached into her pouch for a bomb and attached it to the pointy end of her arrow, her horse steadily galloping in a straight line, the sound of its hooves softly smashing vivid green grass suddenly turning into a sharper, louder sound as it collided on the rock ground. Zelda pulled the reins, halting her horse, and pulled out her bow. She aimed for the different colored rocks that blocked the tunnel to Zora's Domain and let her arrow cut through the air, exploding the stones when the bomb touched them. Her stallion neighed and backed away, but she kicked her heels on its body and ordered it to go forward anyway, into the dark tunnel.

They emerged in Zora's Domain, Zelda hopped off her horse's back and hastily pulled back her hood before the guards could point their spears toward her. They bowed shallowly and hurriedly moved towards the stallion to take care of it while the princess ran up the length of the tunnel towards the throne room. The guards standing before the entrance allowed her to pass without questioning; some threw worried glance over their shoulders while others shook their head slowly and pitifully, but the overwhelming feeling of loss and grief was heavy in the air.

Zelda finally reached the young Zora seated on the throne, his eyes were shut tight and his fingertips were pressed against his eyelids. His body trembled, shoulders visibly shaking and he didn't look up to acknowledge her. She ran a gloved hand on her face to wipe out some sweat before dropping to her knees before him, hands lightly landing on his knees. "Ralis," his name came out in a breathy whisper and said prince shot his head up, eyes open wide and rimmed red from crying too much. "I'm so sorry." Formalities be damned, they were friends above anything else.

Ralis lunged forward and hugged her; Zelda wrapped her arms around his torso and let the young prince cry on her shoulder as silent tears escaped from her tightly shut eyes.

Rutella was gone.

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**::**

The Zoras had always been quiet, peaceful and reserved creatures, barely causing any fuss or speaking too loudly. Zelda was used to the quiet atmosphere of the Zora castle, but it was ridiculous how deadly silent it was in that night. It was overwhelming, to say the least. Ralis barely spoke while eating dinner, the princess even tried to talk to him and distract his depressed mind, but it was no use. Komali wouldn't be in Hyrule in less than forty eight hours, but Zelda guessed his company would go to waste, just like hers. The Zoras seemed to prefer to mourn over their lost ones in silence and preferably alone. When Zelda lost her mother and sibling she was alone too, but not because she wanted to be.

She rolled around in the bed of guest room and sighed into the pale blue silk sheets. Maybe some fresh air and some water would help her sleep she decided as she threw away the covers and swung her legs over the edge of the bed. Zelda put on the robe Shad and Ashei brought to her earlier that evening and put on her pink fluffy shoes before heading out the door and quietly tiptoeing away. Who would care that she was wearing fluffy bedroom shoes; everyone was too consumed by sadness to even notice it, Zelda herself wouldn't have left the room wearing them were she not so mentally and emotionally tired.

Walking up a set of stairs in order to leave the underground castle, Zelda hugged herself to protect her front from the chilly night air as she emerged in the throne room. No guards were in sight; they were probably all gathered up in the lake below guarding the base of the waterfall and the stone tunnel she used to reach the top entrance of the castle, the only path non-Zoras used to visit the Zora leader.

Zelda made her way to the top of the waterfall and glanced down below, seeing darkness and only darkness. She took a small step forward, determined to try and see something, taking extra care to keep her feet away from the edge.

"Careful not to fall." With a gasp, she took two steps back and whirled around, placing her fists before herself and searching in the shadows for whoever talked to her. With a quiet chuckle, the person stepped into the dimly lit area, arms open in a sign of silent invitation "Well, come at me."

She lowered her fists, the right side of her lips pulling up in a crooked smile and straightened her back. "For what? So you can lose again?"

Link chuckled again and circled his arms around her once she stepped within his reach. Zelda wrapped her arms loosely around his torso and rested her forehead on the crook of his neck, feeling his soft breath fan her ears. She heard after a moment a particular shaky breath that left his lips, and she pulled away to look at his troubled face.

"You seem upset." They said in unison, quietly laughing afterwards.

A brief moment of silence, then, "I have something to tell you," he started, unconsciously tightening his grip in her shoulders, "It's about Rutella." When he said nothing afterwards, Zelda pulled back, bringing her hands up to cover her mouth.

She exhaled loudly through her parted lips, suddenly afraid of meeting his eyes, "Link, tell me you aren't responsible for her death."

He ran a hand down his face, "Zelda..." and then grabbed his own hair roughly, "I..."

"Oh Goddesses..." The princess turned away from him, bending over slightly, "Oh Hylia..." She whispered as she slowly eased herself to a kneeling position on the small portion of grass near the entrance.

"No," Link was kneeling before her in a blink of an eye, slowly reaching out for her hands, "Not like that." She didn't pull away, which was a good sign, but she didn't seem to be totally pleased by it. "I am, partially, though." They simultaneously took in a sharp and shallow breath, the Assassin choosing the right words, and the princess preparing herself to what was to come. "I knew about the attack, but I didn't reach her in time," he looked away, ashamed of his incompetence, "I couldn't save her..."

Zelda laced her fingers with his in a silent signal of support, met his gaze and smiled sympathetically. "I'm sorry I accused you for... For murdering her."

The assassin shook his head, "It's fine, really." He stood, taking her with him, and led the princess to a less illuminated part, where he could pull down his hood without being caught by a guard. "At least I was able to catch the intruders... Not one of them survived, but still..."

They sat together side by side, he playing with her fingers and trying to distract himself a little while she tried to make his features out in the scarce light. His attempts to distract himself didn't work and so Link decided to tell her more. "She only died after the assailant was dead, though... And she asked me to look out for her son until everything settled."

"And what are you going to do?" She asked, though she already knew his answer, but Zelda felt compelled to ask nonetheless.

He grasped her hand, using his other hand to trail patterns on the back of hers, "I'll do what she asked me to." Link directed his gaze to their hands as he quietly added, "But I must admit that I'm afraid."

Zelda brought her free hand to his face and caressed his cheek, the skin softer than the last time she touched it, "Afraid of what, Link? I thought you didn't fear anything."

"And I didn't, but after today..." He trailed off with a heavy sigh, still unable to meet her eyes, "What if... What if I don't get to you in time?" Her hands ceased the comforting motion on his cheek and she stared at him paralyzed, "It could've been you."

She remained silent, searching for the right words and the right way to comfort him. Zelda didn't expect it to affect him so greatly, and she could only imagine that some time in the past Rutella was important to him. But still Link didn't seem like the type of person who would doubt himself; he usually emanated confidence, flowing off his body in waves of energy that usually boosted her own. It was no wonder that she managed to face him that night, the most dangerous and feared assassin fighting the petite princess of the kingdom.

But that could not explain, however, how she stood up against her two guards, injuring one of them and fighting the other. That was her own confidence, her sheer courage which she had stored up in her that Zelda never had a chance to use before that event.

Licking her lips, she dropped her other hand on his and clasped it. "Don't be silly, Link. Nothing's going to happen, and besides, I can fend for myself."

"I swore to myself that I'd protect you!" Their eyes met then, his blazing with fire and resolve, while hers were wide and startled by his sudden outburst. Link waited to speak again, waited for his nerves to calm down, waited for the Zoras that were guarding the base of the waterfall believe that they had just imagined things, and waited for his princess to blink away her fear. "Zelda, I've been watching you long before I killed your father." She flinched at his words and briefly wondered how she could love – was it really love? Yes, definitely – the man who murdered her father. "I won't forgive myself if anything happens to you!"

Zelda looked away briefly, "Don't doubt yourself, Link. If you don't trust yourself, who will?"

Averting his gaze, he muttered into the gentle breeze, "I like to think you will."

"I always will trust you, Link." She smiled widely, "Please, don't be so harsh on yourself. I'm sure Rutella doesn't blame you for anything, nobody does."

Link smiled, grateful that she would always be on his side, and watched in silence as she kissed his knuckles before standing up. Zelda looked around whilst tightening the robe around her, unintentionally giving Link a brief peek at her pale peach colored silk nightgown. He understood then that she was retiring for the night, something he should be doing too. Standing up, he wiped his hands on his rear to get rid of the dirt and offered, "I'll accompany you to the doors."

She looked at him, smiling, "So I see you decided to abandon the bearded look."

He rubbed his chin and slipped one hand into the pocket of his pants, smiling when she reached up and touched his fingers. "I was going to shave in the morning, but the kids woke up earlier than expected and pressured me to take them to Castle Town as soon as possible."

Zelda giggled, lowering her hand and folding them together before her body. She gazed at the flowing water, feeling slightly confused and a little tired, "Where are you going to stay the night?"

"My camp is nearby, don't worry." The touch of his fingers on her hair made her shiver and she resisted the urge to lean into his touch.

"Oh, good," Zelda fiddled with the pendant of her necklace that rested on her collarbones, "I was about to offer you to stay with me if it was too far from here."

Link found the perfect opportunity to lighten the mood – and to tease her and get her all flustered up as well. Brushing one strand of her hair behind her ears, he graced her with the most seductive smile he could manage, "Oh, so you want to spend the night with me."

Her eyes snapped wide open and her cheeks tainted soft pink, the color spreading down her neck and all the way to the tips of her ears. She coughed into her palm and half turned away from him, leaving his hand hovering in the air, "I just don't want you to spend the night in this cold weather."

He hummed low in his throat and lazily kicked the ground, slipping his other hand inside the pocket as well, "And you'd keep me warm by spooning with me while we slept." Link actually felt the air shift around then as she scowled and fully turned away from him. Chuckling, he placed his hands on her shoulders and squeezed them a few times, "Relax, I'm only joking."

Zelda turned around; Link kept his hands on her shoulders and met her eyes expectantly. "I'd like to spend a night with you, yes." She murmured after a few heartbeats, the light pink blush on her face never fading.

They remained like that, in silence and staring at each other, for a long while, each contemplating the words that just left the monarch's mouth. After some minutes, Zelda convinced herself that she had said something very wrong, for Link hadn't said anything yet, nor moved, nor blinked.

"I- I'm sorry- I- Oh Goddessess, I- I have to go," She hastily turned and hurriedly walked away and into the throne room, then into the door leading to the underground palace.

Link stood frozen in place, hands hovering in the air as they slowly descended to hang by his side. He blinked once, twice, fiercely shook his head and closed his eyes tightly as he fought the sudden wave of chuckles that threatened to escape his mouth. Zelda was truly something he intended to protect and keep in his life until his days came to an end.


	8. This Was Planned

Hello again, guys! I'll just go ahead and warn you that this author's note is gonna be LONG.

Here is the eighth chapter and it is late, as usual, but I have an explanation. I mentioned another Assassin themed story and right after I posted the previous chapter I started working on it, revamping an old story to fit into an Assassin's Creed like world. Turns out that after four or five days of working on the first chapter, the result was disastrous and I really felt bad about it. So I took a break, thinking I had gotten a writer's block and I decided that it wouldn't be wise to touch this chapter to review it.

Some days later I had an idea and I started writing it, and everything flowed pretty well. Then it hit me: I just can't write things when I'm not inspired. Sure, the next Assassin story is pratically written in my head, but I don't have any inspiration to actually write it down. I decided I won't work on it until I'm comfortable, that's some bad news, but I also started working on two collection of stories, I'll be writing a longer version for a few chapters of _The 2nd Law_ and later tonight I'll start planning a new story similar to _The 2nd Law._

These are my plans:

- Two Twilight Princess one-shot collections, one different from the other;

- A longer version of _Follow Me_, from _The 2nd Law_ (this one is flowing pretty well);

- Longer versions of _Animals_ (I already have some ideas) and _Supremacy_, both from _The 2nd Law_

- A new story based off another album, much like _The 2nd Law_, though every chapter is linked to the other; in another words, it's a real multi chapter fic.

That is pretty much it! On a side note, we need more TP Zelink stories, because I'm tired of imagining TP Link and Zelda in AU stories D:

**- Guest Reviews**

_- Wow: This is amazing. There are a few spelling errors her and there, but nothing major. Overall, this is really good so far, and I can't wait for chapter 8._

Thank you! And please don't be afraid to point out those errors!

_- Gothicwings94:Omg, they are just too cute!_

They are, aren't they? /squals my otp ;w;

_- Zelink005:Oh well, Link without a beard is perfectly fine too...He is always sexy anyway xD The end had me in a giggling fit, it was so cute ! You almost had me, I thought Link killed Rutella...! Continue like that ! :)_

Link is perfect ugh how can someone be so handsome and perfect omfg well, I'm glad to know I made you believe he killed her, though I'm still sad that I ha to wipe her off :( but thank you!

**- End of Reviews**

I really really really hope you guys enjoy this chapter; I added a pinch of the good old Brazilian-soap-opera spice!

Have fun and tell me what you think!

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**Chapter Eight**

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Zelda fanned herself with the fan Nabooru lent her earlier that evening, the unusual hot temperature of the ballroom contrasted with the usually chilly weather of the Twilight Kingdom. If Zelda knew the princess would light up every fireplace in the room, she wouldn't have put so many layers of warm clothing. She tugged slightly on the long sleeves of her deep emerald green dress and smiled at her companion once she had returned with a flute of red wine.

"Oh, Zelda dear, you must be feeling awful under all this clothing." Nabooru commented as she retrieved her fan from the hidden dress pocket and started fanning the princess, "Princess Midna should've warned everyone about this. Not everyone here is used to an overwhelming heat."

The Gerudo winked at that last statement, making the Hylian laugh a little as she wiped her slightly damp brow. "The amount of people here does not make the situation better in the slightest."

Nabooru nodded her head and hummed in agreement, then sipped her drink as her other hand still fanned the younger lady. "Well, it's a special occasion. She's getting married, after all." She wrinkled her nose then and briefly fanned herself before returning her hand in Zelda's direction, "I still don't know what she sees in Zant, though. That man doesn't seem to have his head in the right place, I don't know."

Thanking the servant for bringing her a glass of cool water, Zelda sipped it despite the urge to gulp it down at once and giggled at the Gerudo's comment. "Well, he is kind of cute if you look at him under a certain light and in a certain angle."

Clicking her tongue, Nabooru directed her yellow eyes to the other people in the room as she spoke, "Speaking of marriage and 'cute' boys," Zelda rolled her eyes and smiled slightly, she knew they would get to this topic sooner or later, "Has someone caught your eyes lately?"

Zelda looked down at the glass and lightly trailed the rim with her fingertip, debating if whether or not she should tell Nabooru about Link. She knew the Gerudo would be happy and pleased, but on the other hand that man _murdered_ Nabooru's husband as well as Zelda's father. The princess didn't know what the Gerudo Queen thought about him, and she would not ask her now because it would give away too much information, so the Hylian carefully chose the right words before replying. "Well, there is this one guy..."

The queen turned around, a mischievous glint in her eyes as she regarded the princess, "Yes?"

"But he's," Zelda gave out a breathy laugh, feeling her cheeks heat up a little more, "To put it simply, he's out of my league."

Nabooru frowned, squinting her eyes slightly at the cool wind that caressed her skin when she fanned her face, "Out of your league? Girl, if anything, _you_ are the one out of their leagues."

Deciding to follow the Gerudo's movements, the princess fanned herself in hopes that her skin would cool down and return to its original color. "He is kind of an outlaw, so we are both out of our leagues."

They laughed in unison, "Oh, forbidden love," Nabooru chuckled and lightly shook her head, "doing things in secret is more exciting, you know." Zelda felt more heat concentrate on her cheeks, but thankfully the Gerudo didn't seem to notice, for her gaze was turned away from her and firmly locked on the other side of the ballroom. "Oh, if it's not Midna's new best friend."

Zelda hummed while she sipped her water, the sound coming out inquisitively as she searched among the crowd for said person. "There were rumors that Midna was going to break off with Zant so she could marry this guy," Nabooru shrugged and gave her empty flute to a servant who was passing by, "Now there are rumors that she's cheating on her fiancé." Clicking her tongue again, she turned to look at the Hylian who was still trying to find the man. "Over there, dear," she cocked her head to the right, "the one wearing the dark blue outfit."

Nodding, Zelda directed her gaze to the right and indeed she found Princess Midna talking to her new best friend clad in blue, who also happened to be Link. The Hylian stared at them with her lips parted in astonishment, her words left her and her mind tripped on itself as she tried to desperately make sense out of the situation. Just... Just how Link and Midna met if the kingdoms were days of travel apart?

Yellow eyes focused on her face and the queen placed a hand on her shoulder. "He's quite handsome if you ask me. You should talk to him, if he's available that is." When she chuckled , Zelda snapped back into reality and looked at her face a second before Link looked directly at her from across the room. Not knowing she was being watched, she smiled slightly at the comment and linked arms with Nabooru as the queen proclaimed, "Come, let's go freshen up and try to get rid of some of this clothing. You'll faint if this room gets any hotter."

At long last, when both ladies returned from the restroom, Zelda was relieved to have taken off some layers of her clothing. Nabooru suggested that she kept her long coat over her dress, for it would keep her body at the right temperature inside the warm room. But although she was feeling a lot better than before, her skin was still too pink to her taste, and so the princess left the Gerudo to mingle with the other nobles as she moved to the yard just outside the ballroom.

Placing her hands on the balustrade, the Hylian dipped her head forward and heaved out a long sigh before she straightened her back in hopes that it would ease the tension in her muscles. Suddenly, the fan Nabooru lent her earlier was thrust before her face and Zelda pulled her head back to look at it quizzically.

"You dropped this," her heart clenched in her chest, head turning to look at Link who was casually leaning on the railing. "Hey."

Zelda pressed her lips together, forced air into her lungs and gulped down the knot on her throat. Oh Goddesses, she loved him; she loved him so dearly, but now after what she just heard, she didn't know who to trust. His handsome smile that had just caused her heart to hurt and quicken its pace slowly vanished and he took a step forward, only to make Zelda take a step back. "What's wrong?" He frowned and brought a hand to her face, tenderly caressing it.

She looked away, biting her lips. "You sent me a letter not one month ago," sucking in a shaky breath, the princess raised an equally shaky hand and gently pried the fan from his fingers, "you told me you would remain in Zora's Domain for the next four months, and yet," their eyes met, hers embed with sadness while he slowly understood what she was implying, "and yet, here you are."

"Zelda," his hands grabbed her shoulders, "I can guarantee you that this was planned."

"Were you planning for me to find it out like this?" Her chuckle was dry and void of humor, eyes crinkling and shining brightly from the unshed tears that she wanted to let escape. Look at what happens when you open up and give your heart to a criminal. "Assassin," she called; Link's eyes widened then narrowed, his lips pulled down into a scowl, "Zelda is dead." The princess took a step back and slowly put on the mask of a self centered monarch she never aspired to be, "It is Your Highness to you."

Link fought the urge to grab her and demand for explanations, but rather decided to bury his fists into his pockets so that he would refrain from doing so. "Do you care to explain, Your Highness?" The growl was evident in his voice, the loving title _My Princess_ that she had grown to love missing from his sentence.

Yes, that was how it should be.

"Do you care to tell me how you met Princess Midna, how you two got so close to one another?" Licking her lips wearily, she continued, "Assassin, I cannot keep doing this anymore. You were raised to fight, to eliminate corruptors, and you have certainly wooed other girls before." Zelda raised her hand before he could protest, "I am not, however, implying that you are playing me. I just... I just cannot give my heart to someone who I only see every month or two."

Yes, she actually could; she had given it to him already, actually, wrapped up in a nice red bow. And Zelda would never take it back, she knew that as well.

He merely imitated her chuckle from before, dry and humorless, as he slowly shook his head. "Are you jealous?" Link asked, peering down at her and watched as she didn't even try to hide the obvious answer in her eyes.

"I may be," was her only answer, though he had already seen she was deeply jealous, and deeply frustrated, sad and confused as well. He owed her explanations and he would explain himself truthfully if she ever gave him the chance. "I want to know to whom your world revolves around."

As if on cue, someone called him from inside the ballroom at the same time Zelda finished her sentence and Link whipped his head instantly towards the source of the call. The princess slowly turned her, her heart cold and heavy as she watched the Twili princess beckoning him with her hand and with a broad grin on her face before she turned away. Zelda lowered her head and Link looked back at her, suddenly realizing his mistake.

"Zelda, please," he begged in a whispery voice, to which she replied with a slight shake of her head.

She reached out and lightly grasped his hand, "I guess you have found the sun of your world. I am sure Zant will understand," Zelda gave his hand a gentle and brief squeeze, and released it, "Goodbye, Assassin." The princess walked deeper into the yard without looking back.

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Link was, to an extent, bored. He rubbed his wrists, glanced around the room, trying to find Zelda but to no avail. He wanted to go after her, to talk to her and hug her and kiss her, but he knew that the best would be to give her some time and space so she could handle her emotions well. It seemed like a whole eternity had passed while he waited for her to return to the ballroom, but she never did.

He wondered if maybe she had retired to her guestroom, already forming a plan on how he would sneak inside in the middle of the night and explain everything. He would force her to listen if she didn't want to, and he would even wake Midna and Zant so they could help the Ordonian clear things out.

The Assassin sipped his wine, the taste not pleasing him in the least, but what was there to do now that nothing seemed to bring his spirits up? He was going to take a walk around the garden outside, Link decided as he stood from his seat, but he never had the chance of getting close to the doors for Midna grabbed his arm and snatched him away. It had been like that the whole afternoon, presentations and boring conversations with Twili nobles and wealthy people from the Twilight Kingdom; they never gave him a break, not when he was trying to find Zelda, not when he found and lost her, and not even now that he wanted to beat himself up for being so stupid.

Nonetheless, he stood patiently and smiled politely at the nobles when they directed words at him, sometimes even replying with short and straight answers, but for most part he kept his brain focused on other matters. He hardly recognized Nabooru as she talked to a few guards near the door on the other side of the room and he barely frowned when said guards nodded and left. _Weird_, he thought, but that was it. What would he expect from a woman he didn't know whose husband he killed? Revenge was at the top of his list- _oh_, his eyes widened slightly, _oh_.

So Nabooru was responsible for telling Zelda the rumors he and the fiancés had tried so hard to wipe out. But... But the Gerudo Queen had yet to lunge at him and try to tear his head off, so maybe Zelda didn't mention their secret relationship, if it could be called that. It was only mild gossip then, between two monarchs who lost everything they held dear to them. Still Link wished he had gotten to Zelda before the rumors did.

Midna grabbed his arms and dragged him around some more, briefly looking around and spotting her fiancé talking to a few family friends, and then stopped once she had crossed paths with whom she was seeking for. "Nabooru, finally!" The princess exclaimed contently, but immediately her mood was damped by the frown on the Gerudo's face, "You seem worried. What happened?"

"Have you seen Zelda?" Link's attention was suddenly all focused on the queen and he looked at her expectantly, worriedly. "She's been missing for hours!"

_Hours_? The Hylian cast an urgent glance at the clock and realized that it was nearing eight in the evening. In a place like the Twilight Kingdom, where the sun sets at nine in the night and rises at five in the morning, it was hard telling the time just by looking at the sun that seemed to never be high up in the ask, but always bordering the horizon.

The Twili raised her eyebrows, eyes widening in the slightest. Before she could say something, though, the guards that were talking to Nabooru approached them and bowed shallowly in their rush. The Gerudo was already motioning for them to speak, and quickly, when one of them gently presented her with something.

"We found this in the stables, Your Majesty." The Gerudo's breath hitched as she slowly opened the fan she gave Zelda. Link stared at it with the same intensity, trying to put the pieces together, while Midna refrained from hitting her guards for not giving them more information of Zelda's whereabouts.

The other guard decided to answer her unspoken question, causing the three of them to freeze in time and place, "The Crown Princess of Hyrule was nowhere to be found."


	9. I Promised Her

Hello hello! Here I am again!

Now that my classes started again, I'll post the chapters a little bit later than usual (around midnight here in Brazil). Other than that, there aren't any more changes. And I'm really putting my all to write the multi chapter fic, but it's soooo hard because most of the songs have sad lyrics, or lyrics that don't fit their personality at all.

**- Guest Reviews**

_-Gothicwings94:Link go save her! Kick **!_

Go go go go gogogogogogogogo Liiiink!

_-Zelink005:Oooooh cliffhanger ! Awww Zelda, stop denying your feelings to Link you'll only hurt yourself ! Anyway, keep it up !_

Zeeeeellllddaaaaa, you're hurting us as weeeellllll! Aaand thaaank yoou!

**- End of Reviews**

I you guys enjoy this chapter; this one's not fluffy and romantic, and it's a little short, but it's very needed, sorry!

Have fun and tell me what you think!

And also tell me if you guessed right!

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**Chapter Nine**

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Midna was seated on her chair behind her work desk, her fiancé standing behind her with his hands gently placed on her shoulders. Nabooru was sitting on one of the cushioned chairs in the room, constantly twirling the fan in her hands in a sign of anxiety. The Gerudo woman was the type of person who would rather act instead of seat around discussing the matter at hand, but they didn't know anything else beside the fact that Zelda was kidnapped. There were no signs left behind, no clues for them to analyze.

The princess cradled her head in her hands and sighed into her palms, all the while listening to Link's steps echoing in the room as he anxiously paced around. "Link, sit down," Midna groaned, "You're making us more anxious than we already are."

Link stopped, glared at her and resumed his pacing, mumbling few incoherent words under his breath and occasionally grabbing his hair. Zant sighed and murmured to his lover that he was going to return to the party before anyone noticed they were both missing, then he gave her a quick kiss on the top of her head and briskly left the place.

Nabooru was growing tired of witnessing all the pacing; her hands were itching to break something on his head or to break his nose, and she wouldn't mind doing both as long as he stopped. Rather than start a fight, she left out a long audible sigh and turned to Midna, "How did you two meet?"

"Exchange of favors," she replied instantly, eyeing the man before rolling her eyes, "He wanted to save Hyrule from the crisis; I wanted to get rid of a few pests in my kingdom."

The Gerudo merely nodded and directed her next question to the only man in the room, "What about you?" He stopped again, his piercing gaze locking with hers, "How did you meet Zelda?"

He gulped, quickly looked at Midna and once again started walking around, "That's not the point."

"Yes, it is." She replied, leaning forward as if to better taunt him, "If it weren't, you wouldn't be worried sick about her safety."

"I just admire the princess a lot, that's all." He mumbled right after sliding his hands down his face.

Midna thought it was the perfect time to intervene, "You should tell her, Link. She deserves to know."

Link knew she was right, but he wanted to avoid unnecessary problems. He sighed, clamped his hand over his mouth and paced some more. Nabooru kept quiet, waiting for as long as her patience would allow and watching him with wary eyes. Finally, the Hylian stopped and turned to her, arms open as his hidden blades slipped out from under the sleeves of his coat. "I'm the assassin who killed the King of Hyrule and your husband, Ganondorf Dragmire."

Both Hylian and Twili watched as the Gerudo, too, clamped her hand over her mouth and stared long and hard at the wall. Link lowered his arms but kept watching for her every move, ready to counterattack if needed. "Relax," the command startled both him and the princess, "I'm not going to kill you, as much as I want to." Nabooru lowered her hand and started playing with the fan again, "Though I think I'll never forgive you for killing him."

"So why are you letting me live?" He inquired, finally lowering his defenses.

Her smile was broad and sly. Nabooru drummed her fingers on her thighs before she pointed at him using the fan, "You are important to Zelda as well, she told me about you." She briefly glanced at Midna before continuing, "Had I know that you were the man she talked about, I wouldn't have told her the rumors."

Link's suspicions were right after all and he asked her in an agitated tone, "Why did you tell her?"

The queen raised her hands, as if to show she was unarmed. "We came to the Twilight Kingdom together in the same carriage. Days of travelling and very few topics to talk about." Nabooru shut her eyes and turned her head away, "When I saw the both of you talking, I remembered the rumors and so I told her, for lack of anything else to talk about."

Midna watched the conversation in silence, eyes darting from one to another and examining their reactions and actions, trying to foresee who would attack who first. "Oh please," Nabooru continued and locked her gaze with his, "I helped the King raise Zelda after she lost both mother and sibling. I'd never do that on purpose, even if I knew the affection you share."

"Just what..." He started, not knowing what exactly to say, "What did she tell you? About us?"

Nabooru smiled again and allowed a deep chuckle to escape her lips. "Zelda may not have noticed it, but her voice was much softer, her eyes were brighter as well, and her pupils were dilated." Link sighed and looked down, grabbing fistfuls of his hair and yanking at them as a strangled noise left his mouth. "She said you were both out of each others' leagues, and now I understand why."

The assassin let go of his tresses and slammed his closed fists on the nearest wall. The Twili princess shot up from her seat, scowling, "Link! You better not break anything!"

He turned to her, eyes flashing dangerously and he all but barked, "I need to find her, Midna!" Both women leaned back at his outburst, pointedly staring at him with wide eyes. "I promised her! I told her I'd never let anything happen!"

"Link, Link," she started, slowly walking around her desk, "We know, we know you are worried, but-"

"I can't," Link whispered as he turned away, "I can't let it happen to her, too! Rutella...! Rutella died because I couldn't protect her! I-"

Neither he or Midna saw when Nabooru stood from her seat, but Midna watched, while Link only felt, the Gerudo queen slap his cheek hard, leaving a red bruise on his skin. He leaned back on the wall, tilted his head up and his mouth opened in a silent cry of despair. The princess nodded at the queen, who merely closed her eyes and spat, sarcasm dripping from her words, "What a great assassin you are! You really are an inspiration to all of us!" Her yellow eyes narrowed when she looked at him again, noticing how he was now glaring at her, "I've seen young Gerudo children handle a situation like this better than you!"

Midna decided to intervene again, "Nabooru," she moved her hands in a soothing motion, "let's not start a fight."

"No, that's exactly what we need now!" She turned her head away from the princess and faced the man again, "Stop overreacting! Listen here," Nabooru took in a deep breath and continued, "You won't make the same mistake twice, and _you_ know you won't, but you're afraid you will and it's making you lose control! You're overreacting because you fear you won't make it in time, because you don't wanna break a promise, and not because Zelda was kidnapped, and let's be honest now," the Gerudo took a step forward and pointed in the general direction of Dragon Roost Kingdom, "Did you throw a fit when you found out her own guards were about to attack her?"

After a few moments of silence, Link sighed, defeated, and decided to sit down on the cool marble floor and lean on the wall. "You're right," he muttered before hiding his face on his hands. "But I promised her, and I thought I would never break this promise."

"We can't control what happens in our lives, Link." Midna commented as she sat down on her chair, "Though I'm pretty sure that if Zelda found out in time, she would've warned us and fought back."

This time, Nabooru was the one who started pacing, and she nodded while doing so. "Zelda won't back down without a fight. She fought you, she fought her guards. She fights better with her rapier, though, because it's lighter and easier to handle."

"She's capable of defending herself," the Gerudo nodded in agreement, "and her senses are usually very sharp. She would have heard if someone was approaching or not." Midna picked a sheet of paper from the desktop and started shredding it, calmly, into pieces, "If Zelda didn't notice the attack, this person must be very skilled."

"My first guess is that this person is an assassin." Link pointedly glared at Nabooru to which she replied by raising her hands again, "Hey, I'm not saying it because I hate the kinds like you, but think about it. You're trained to walk as quietly as possible and kill people in the middle of the night."

Midna turned her attention to Link, "Nabooru is right, they're the first suspects."

The assassin shook his head, "No. We're trained, yes, but we're mainly trained to protect the Royal Family."

"You killed her father!" The queen exclaimed and plopped down on the cushioned chair, crossing her arms over her chest.

He raised his hand, "Her father was an exception, but let me rephrase that, then. We train to protect those who need to be protected against the government, and Zelda needs this protection."

They fell silent, each debating the topic in their minds. Link chided himself for the show he performed earlier, mentally kicking himself and cursing. If he had to think of an excuse, or probably find the real cause of his disastrous display, he would think of the same thing Nabooru pointed out: Link was _scared._ He was scared of failing her, of not reaching her in time. Where did all his courage go? With a mental dry chuckle, he told himself that Zelda took it with her before she left him in the yard.

Actually, Zelda took a lot of things, but she gave him things as well. This thing they had that he liked to call a _stable_ relationship wasn't something he expected, not after all the grief he caused her in the beginning. But she somehow started liking him, at which point, though, he didn't know. They had kissed only once, held hands a handful of times, but the amount of things they said to each other spoke louder than all those actions. From the light flirting, to his incessant teasing and finally to her blunt confession months ago.

Link swore that if she ever accepted him back, he'd visit her more frequently, and tell her every day how important she was to him, and do whatever she asked, as long as she was his.

"Why Zelda of all people?" He accidentally wondered aloud and both ladies in the room turned to look at him.

Midna smiled sympathetically, "Zelda is young, beautiful and single."

"Not to mention she's the Crown Princess of one of the most prosperous kingdoms in this planet." Nabooru added after a few milliseconds.

Young, beautiful, single, Crown Princess...

"Shit," the assassin muttered as he stood up and pushed himself away from the wall, "shit," he repeated a little louder while cracking his knuckles.

"What's wrong?" The Twili inquired, eyeing him as if he had grown another head.

Link turned to face her, "_Single_ is the key word, she's single, that's why she was kidnapped! Goddesses, why didn't I think of it before?"

Nabooru sat up straight and then leaned forward, "You remember me of those guards who said nothing earlier about her whereabouts. Who took her?"

He met her gaze and replied, "The Duke of Termina did."


	10. And I Must Decline

I really did it this time, didn't I? In my defense, I'd like to say that this chapter wasn't supposed to exist, but _predatorform_ mentioned how cool it would be to see the kidnapping scene from Zelda's pov and, well, I didn't have anything planned and so I thought why not? But while I tried to come up with something and write it, I had two gifts to draw and one to write (the story I published on Friday) and these are another reasons as to why it took me too long.

The writing may not be that good, though; it would take me at least two more weeks to feel entirely good about this chapter and I really didn't want to make you guys wait more, but I swear I'll spellcheck it and correct any mistakes later! I won't reply to the reviews this time, I'm so sorry! But know that I read them and appreciate them A LOT!

I'll make it up to you, though, I'll post the eleventh chapter this Friday as usual!

Again, I'm so so so so so so sorry! I hope you guys enjoy this not-so-good chapter and tell me what you think maybe?

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**Chapter Ten**

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Zelda furiously wiped her tears as she walked away. The cobblestone pavement caused her to lose her footing more than twice, but it wasn't enough to make her fall down. She walked away from the ballroom and towards the stables, where she'd find solace in the companion of horses and maybe a dog or a few cats.

Damn Link for being good looking; damn him for wanting to have every girl in the world. She scoffed, though it sounded more like a choke. Of course he would be like that; he was the most famous assassin of their era, the most skilled man of the kingdom, and undoubtedly the most desired. Though he kept his face hidden at all times when wearing his hood and weapons, she could tell women desired him. He was confident, he was kind, and he was everything every woman would want. Without his hood it would be no different; with his features in plain sight, that was just another reason why women would be flocking at him.

Sighing, she wished that Link could at least be an average looking guy, or even ugly. That way, the girls would have one less reason to pursue his love and affection.

Maybe she shouldn't have met him at all, but there was no way she could change it, even if she could go back in time. _'Go back in time...'_ Suddenly, the idea of borrowing the treasured Ocarina of Time from her family's heirloom was tempting. She could go back in time, avoid him in her birthday party and save her future self from a broken heart.

_'If only things worked out that way...'_

Shivering from the cold and wrapping her arms around herself, Zelda now wished she was wearing all the extra layers of clothing she shed earlier. With no mind, heart or disposition to go back to the ballroom and face Link again, she quickened her pace towards the stables.

Inside, she sighed in relief and dropped her arms to her sides, moving to seat on a small bench at the end of the only aisle. The horses neighed as she passed them, but one in particular caught her attention. The red mare snorted and nuzzled its nose into her shoulder, which caused the princess to turn and look at it. Smiling slightly, Zelda petted the horse and combed her mane with her gloved fingers.

"You're Epona, aren't you?" She asked quietly, chuckling when the horse neighed in answer. "It's been some time, no?" Epona hit her hooves on the ground and neighed once more, peering at the princess with black, shining eyes.

Zelda leaned on the wooden pillar near the small gate and maintained eye contact. "You miss your master, don't you girl?" Once again, the horse replied with a sound of her own, causing the woman to smile a little. "I miss him too..." She admitted quietly from behind the palm she had brought up to her lips, side glancing at the hays lying nearby. "But Master Link apparently likes collecting and breaking hearts. I can't let him do that to me."

Epona threw her head back and snorted; Zelda looked at her curiously. "Oh? You disagree?" Crossing her arms under her chest and turning to face the horse, she continued, "Tell me why." The horse neighed and she nodded, smiling at her silliness. Maybe Epona really understood what she was saying, but still she was talking to a horse.

The other horses in the stable suddenly got agitated and Zelda stepped back and away from Epona, straining her ears to hear any suspicious sounds she could pick. And of course she heard one and the princess turned to face the closed gates of the stables, waiting for them to be opened. In a matter of seconds, they opened in a slow pace and soon enough a cloaked head peeked inside. Zelda remained calm and kept her expressions in check as she studied the person.

No.

No, it wasn't Link.

And she didn't know whether to feel relieved or only more alarmed.

Fighting the urge to fist her hands, she neatly folded them before herself and waited for the person to approach her. They bowed low in reverence and soon straightened their back, hands meeting behind their back. "Your Highness, I was sent to escort you back to the ballroom." It was a man just like she suspected.

She smiled politely and declined with a slight shake of her head, "I will return, but not now. I want to have some time for myself and my thoughts."

The man emitted a sound close to a chuckle and offered her his hand, "I must insist, Your Highness."

Zelda kept her hands pressed against her stomach and forced her smile to widen. "And I must decline."

"But the Assassin requested me to search for you!" Her eyebrows slightly rose at that. _Oh? Is that so?_ No one, besides herself and maybe Midna, knew that Link was the assassin and he would have come after her if that was the case. This cloaked man was up to something.

Biting the inside of her cheek lightly, she replied, "Very well. We will go back to the palace." The man bowed shallowly and turned towards the entrance, Zelda close behind. "Oh, Mister?"

"Yes madam?" He inquired as he turned around and Zelda's fist connected to his jaw. She brought her knee up and knelt him near his groin, forced her elbow on his stomach and used the heel of her hand to break his nose. The stranger doubled over in pain and Zelda took it as her cue to run away, breathing shallowly as she slowly realized that the person didn't have a nose. Or rather, it was covered by something. By a–

Something wrapped around her legs and she fell forward, trying to lessen the pain that she was surely going to feel. The princess propped herself on her elbows and looked over her shoulder at her legs; was that a tentacle? Following it, her eyes grew in size at the sight before her.

_A mask._

_The Terminan Mask, Majora's Mask._

All around her, the horses were making a fuss and neighing, but Epona was the one horse that was making more noise and Zelda could only wonder why. The man, who now she strongly suspected to be the Duke of Termina, forcefully grabbed her by her hair and pulled Zelda to a kneeling position; she kept her face cool and emotions under check, merely raising an eyebrow when his face got a little too close to her own. He sneered, or hissed, and yanked her back with a tug, forcing her to lie on her back.

"You try too hard, Princess." The Duke, or the Mask she couldn't tell, bound her wrists together and rolled her around to lie on her stomach. "You can't defend yourself."

With that said he delivered a blow to the nape of her neck and knocked her out.

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When her senses returned to her, Zelda found herself lying in a rather soft bed with her wrists still bound together and fully clothed. She sighed in relief; who knew what the Duke would do now that this mask possessed him? She would sit up if she could, but she decided to stay down among the pillows and try to comfort herself.

It wasn't a secret to her why she was the constant target for outlaws and rich bachelors; she was young and the princess of one of the riches kingdoms around, and she was also single. It was like a Christmas present, really, three for one and as bonus you get for yourself a pretty crown to adorn your (much probably) air filled head.

Judging by the silence all around her, she guessed she was alone and so Zelda used this precious moment to get some facts straight. First, she now regretted telling Ashei to stay at Hyrule and don't accompany her; Ashei would follow her like a shadow and she wouldn't be in this situation now. But Zelda was a grown woman and she knew she couldn't rely on everyone all the time. She had to face her own guards when Ashei was present, not because the knight was too late or incapable of helping her, but because Zelda has to fight for herself. She feels the need to fight, not only to be protected.

She briefly wondered if Link would come to rescue her. Judging by the way she treated him, if he were any other man the chances of him appearing to save the day would be close to zero. But he wasn't a regular man, he was an assassin with principles, and so maybe she'd let herself hope for just a moment that he would come to help her out.

In the mean time, she'd have to fend for herself.

Zelda rolled to lie on her back and examined the bound around her wrists. A knife wouldn't cut them. Maybe magic? She finally decided to sit up and take in her surroundings; the room would be empty if it were not by the double bed and a single nightstand beside it. On the nightstand were a jar of water and a glass, and her throat dried at the sight. She was thirsty and she didn't even realize it before.

The princess awkwardly poured water for herself and sniffed it, examined it carefully before she concluded it wasn't poisoned in any way. Feeling satisfied, she sipped it at first, testing and tasting it, and then decided to gulp it down at once. Sighing, Zelda put the cup down and returned to her spot in the middle of the bed, eyes downcast and focused on her hands.

A quiet rap on the door and it was opened, the Duke's head poked inside, mask still in place. "Oh Zelda, dear, get up, it's time for dinner." She quietly sighed again and decided to obey; he was treating her nicely for someone who had kidnapped her, plus she was hungry. She approached him and held her ground when he brought his hand up to caress her cheek, "good girl. Now, I'll take you to a tour around the mansion."

She nodded her head and silently watched as he covered her eyes with his palms. Her eyes watered and hurt, her body trembled slightly and she felt as warmth left her body. Zelda barely acknowledged that he pulled his hand away. Her vision was foggy, her head was heavy and she felt slightly dizzy. She couldn't see the colors clearly, as if she was colorblind, and her surroundings warped oddly as if she was under the effect of chemicals. Zelda tried to take in a deep breath but found it extremely hard and tiring.

"And we're going to have a special guest tonight." He admitted as he picked her hand and placed between both of his. "I want you to treat him nicely."

Zelda felt herself nod and a second after that she lost her senses.


	11. You Are Not Yourself

Here guys! Like I promised, two chapters in one week! This one isn't rushed, so I think it's pretty good. Tomorrow morning I'll be leaving in a short, two days trip, so I'll reply to your reviews when I get home!

**-Guest Reviews**

_Zelink005:Why are you saying it's bad ? It's pretty good !_  
-Thank you dear ;w; you are too kind!

So some** warnings** only: badly written action scenes (I have yet to learn how to write these) and a little bit of violence; maybe there's a part that's a little dark - to me anyways. And there's a small note at the end.  
Enjoy everyone! And tell me what you think!

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**Chapter Eleven**

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Link was glad that Midna could teleport to wherever she pleased at her own will. He was glad that she was able to warp him and his loyal steed to the borders of Termina, where he bid her a quick farewell, hopped on his horse and galloped towards the Duke's palace. It was early in the morning, the sun had yet to rise, and the streets were deadly quiet save for Epona's hooves hitting the cobblestone pavement.

Finally, he reached his destination. After hiding his horse among trees and bushes that surrounded the area outside the stone walls, Link jumped over the gate and smoothly landed on his feet, sword in hand and bow at reach. Oddly enough, the yards were as silent as the streets, and breaking in inside the house was easier than he expected; the doors were unlocked and all of the windows were opened. He frowned, the unexpected gust of wind tossing the hem of his long hooded cloak around before he finally decided to enter the door he had just opened.

Alarms went off in his head; it was a trap, it had to be. In the absence of light, his eyes easily adjusted to the darkness, already used to many missions in the dark. It would be easier to spot any object that came flying towards his head, he concluded, but nothing compared to fighting in a well illuminated space. Silence greeted his ears in every room he entered, the only sounds he heard were his own footsteps and the buzz in his ears.

He wondered if he was the only living soul in the palace, for he didn't feel another presence anywhere. No servants, no butlers, no Duke and no Zelda. Was he fooled and sent to this place while the Duke fled with her? Or worse; maybe the Duke wasn't responsible for her disappearance, but someone else they didn't know. If that was the case, finding her would take a lot more than expected; after all, the kidnapper didn't leave any clues behind.

Pushing the door to the pantry open, Link hastily closed it again, turned and covered his mouth and nose with his hand. Yes, now he knew why the place was so quiet and so dead, just like its occupants. And judging by the strong odor, the servants stopped breathing a long time ago. A bunch of innocent people, all dead. The murderer? Hopefully not the Duke; one mistake was already enough and maybe after Link rescued Zelda, there would still be salvation to the Terminan's soul.

Link decided to leave the kitchen and moved on to the next part of the first floor that he had yet to check. And to his surprise, and maybe relief, there was a dim light seeping through the base of the door and a sound – chuckles, he guessed – coming from elegantly carved double doors.

Holding his breath and quietly laying his head on the door to listen more closely, he expected to hear chuckles, but he heard something else entirely. "How nice of you to join us, Assassin." Yes, it was definitely Duke.

Narrowing his yes, Link pushed the door open and glanced around quickly. The room was spacious and dimly lit by a few candles; the long dining table in the middle had space for ten chairs on each side plus one at each end. Dishes were placed for every seat; the plates, every type of cutlery and glasses, everything was arranged as if he was waiting for more guests. Except that there was no food. Seated with his back turned to the door was the Duke and before him, at the other end of the table, was Zelda.

Breath caught in his throat, Link refrained a sigh of relief from escaping him. She was unharmed, by what it seemed. Her skin was slightly pale and gray, but he figured that the lack of proper illumination in the whole palace would cause it; and her eyes, once lovable and blue, were cold and distant, and reflected the flames of the candles placed before her as if her own irises were of a yellowish orange. Her eyes focused on the space above his shoulder and Link wondered if she was mad at him, wondered if she had agreed to come to this place.

The Duke intervened with a chuckle as he pushed his chair back and stood, "You arrived sooner than I expected." Walking over to Zelda at a lazy pace, he stopped beside her and caressed her cheek with one finger, "My Lady, I'll be waiting for you in the quarters," he trailed his fingers down her neck before dropping his hand and leaving through the door to their right, never once turning around to look at the assassin.

Link stared at the door for a while, waiting for him to return, but he didn't. Once he turned back to look at Zelda he was lucky enough that his reflexes were good, for he barely had time to evade from the plate that came flying in his direction. "Zelda!" He called and ducked left to avoid another plate, "I know you're mad, but do we really need to resort to violence!?"

Another blink of his eyes and the princess was nearing him fast, a sword in her delicate hands. Link placed his before his body, their swords clashed loudly; how odd was it to see her with a regular sword in hand, not her rapier. He analyzed her face, shocked to see that her skin was slightly gray and that her eyes were indeed yellow instead of blue. Her hair was darker, her flesh marked by odd symbols. Just what had he done to her?

Grimacing, the assassin forced her back, deciding to evade her attacks instead of countering. "Zelda, you are not yourself!"She paid no heed to his words and merely advanced forward, swinging her sword diagonally. Link stepped back, eyes darting about as he tried to form a plan.

At long last, he decided to deflect her attack, sending the sword flying in another direction. Link grabbed her wrists and pushed her backwards until her back slammed on the wall; he flinched, whispering an apology, but she didn't react to it in anyway. Instead, she kneed him hard on the stomach, causing him to released her and double over in pain. Meanwhile, she ran towards her sword and Link tried to reach his and deal with the pain at the same time.

By the time he reached it, it was already too late; he turned around to face her and the tip of her sword cut through his flesh, carving it deep into his stomach.

His fingers uncurled, letting go of the hilt and releasing the sword. Zelda blinked for the first time in hours (days even, she couldn't tell) seconds before the blade hit the polished marble floor. She took one step back; Link grabbed the hilt of her sword and forced it out of his body, later falling to his knees as he clutched the wound. He heard her gasp and he looked up, smiling slightly at the sight of her normal self.

Zelda kneeled beside him and helped him lie down on his back. She caressed his cheeks, chocked on a sob and placed her hand on his. "Princess," Zelda met his eyes and she truly, truly didn't deserve the smile that he was giving her, "I know you don't trust the Assassin, but... Does Zelda still trust Link?"

Thoughts run around wildly in her head, but even through the haze of a million images and words blurring her mind she understood what he meant. Link wasn't talking about an assassin and a princess; he wasn't talking about those two identities. He was talking about Link and Zelda, two people like everyone else.

Do _you_ still trust _me_?

Do _you_ still _love_ _me_?

A quick and breathy laugh left her mouth, her lips pulled into a smile and she lowered her forehead to his, "I've never stopped trusting you," she whispered.

Link smiled, closed his eyes and didn't fight her hands as she put his away and placed her own on his wound, her magic seeping through her pores and closing the gash, healing the damaged skin superficially. "Then leave," he moved his head and she pulled away, "Zelda," peering at her, he added slowly, "You must live."

Her magic stopped flowing; her hands trailed up his body and gently cradled his face, "Do _you_ still trust me?"

"I've never stopped trusting you," he repeated her words, a tired smile on his lips.

She smiled sadly, "Then don't stop now, Link," she kissed his forehead and immediately felt his body relax completely, "It ends today."

The princess watched the slow rhythm of his chest as he breathed sound asleep on the dining room floor. Then she reached for his hidden blades and put them on, and took his pouches that had throwing knives or smoke bombs, or any other weapon she could use against the Duke. Content with what she found, she stood and walked to the table, grabbing a few regular knives and put them away in the empty pouches wrapped around her hips under the coat she had been wearing since Midna's party. Lastly, she returned to his side and retrieved his sword, that was much lighter than the one she used to fight him, but still heavier than her rapier – it also would induce the Duke into thinking that Link was defeated. Taking a deep breath to calm her nerves, she moved towards the other door and pushed it open.

She didn't know exactly where she was going, Zelda was just following her instincts that would hopefully lead her to the Duke. The spell she cast on Link covered his body and soul, and the Terminan, and the stupid mask too, wouldn't feel his presence, assuming he was dead. And Zelda, who was also under a spell, had to get to him quickly before he found out that she, somehow, freed herself.

Her hearing was sharp, which helped her detect the sound of logs burning in a fireplace, and she followed it. Only when she was nearing the doors did she realize that she didn't have a plan; the only thing she knew was that she needed to kill the Duke (as Link once said, 'he cannot breathe for much longer anymore, his time is coming') and destroy the cursed mask. She would figure something out, or so she hoped, as she opened the doors to the chamber and prayed to the Goddesses that they would bless her with courage that dawn.

And inside she spotted the Duke – or the mask, she couldn't tell – staring intently at the flames. Stepping in and closing the door, Zelda remained rooted to the spot and silent, waiting for him to initiate a conversation or tell her what to do. While she waited, she calculated and planned, and observed everything in the room that could be used against him.

"So he's truly dead." He commented absentmindedly, "Impressive, My Lady." The Terminan turned, leaned against the wall with his arms crossed, and the eyes of the mask stared into hers; she fought a shudder and remained still. "They say the puppets, if may I use this term, free themselves from the spell after killing their loved ones, but you," he chuckled, "You don't love him, do you? If you did, you'd be far away now."

Zelda said nothing; that was the answer he expected from her, absolute silence. He seemed oblivious to the strange volume around her hips underneath the fabric of her clothing or the sword clean of blood, though. "Well, what are you waiting for?" Extending his arm and beckoning with his hand, she walked towards him without hesitation, letting him wrap his arm around her. Chuckling, he said, "Well, well, well," he nuzzled his nose on her cheek tenderly, "Did you really think I'd fall for that?"

Eyes widening, Zelda whirled around and raised her sword in time to prevent getting a limb chopped off. "I'm not stupid, Princess!" He hissed, pulling his sword back and trying to strike her again.

Who would have guessed that taking swordplay lessons against her father's wishes would be handy in almost every day of her life? She smirked slightly, aimed the sword to his shoulder and swung it, barely missing the target. The Duke grabbed a jar of water on the table nearby and splashed its contents in her direction; Zelda turned her head away, managing to keep her face dry, and crouched down to avoid his blade. Stretching her leg and sweeping it in a large circle, the man fell on his back when her feet hit his legs, but he was quick enough to kick her own legs when she was standing up.

Falling to the floor and gasping in pain, the princess rolled out of the way when he tried to pierce Link's sword through her skull. _Great_, she quickly staggered to her feet and kicked his ribs, sending him crashing on the table. She took out a couple of throwing knives and threw them in his direction while she quickly made her way to the sword that was carved on the floor. The Duke still stood as if the needles were nothing and lunged forward, grabbing her wrist and twisting her arm with one hand, while the other he closed into a fist and punched her cheek.

She barely had time to process what had just happened, for the next thing she knew was that she was roughly slammed into a wall, his hand closed around her throat as he hissed in her face, "Such a pretty face. Why must you defy men?"

"I only defy those who need to be defied," she spat back, blood trailing down her chin.

Zelda was slammed on the wall again before she was thrown on his bed. He straddled her by sitting on her stomach and grabbed a pillow, later holding it against her face. "Women weren't created to raise their voices, let alone their hands! Women are supposed to be delicate!"

The princess tried to remain calm as she clawed at his arms and hands to no avail. Before her head could get any heavier and before she could pass out, Zelda reached out and grabbed his vest, letting the hidden blades sink into his flesh. His grip on the pillow visibly slackened; Zelda threw it away, took in a large gulp of air and aimed a punch to his jaw. The Duke fell off the bed and tried to stand again, but her foot connected to his ribs, this time cracking some of them.

He barely had time to hiss in pain. Another hidden blade was shoved into his stomach, her other hand grabbed the mask as her magic worked to get it off his face. Her chanting voice got louder and louder, as if to cover up his screams of pain and agony; she imagined that the feeling of having the mask removed against the person's wishes would be similar to getting your skin ripped out. Pulling the artifact back in a strong grip, the mask was eventually removed and Zelda quickly pinned it to the ground with one knife so it would not get out of her sight.

She stood, retrieved Link's sword and looked at the face of the unconscious Terminan, debating whether or not to keep him alive. She would, truly, let him live if she had to choose, but she remembered the words Link said a long time ago on her birthday. Crouching down, she took his hands and placed her fingers on the veins of his wrist, closing her eyes as she used one spell she never thought she'd use. If Zelda was going to kill someone, she'd do it in the gentlest way possible.

His pulse stopped and the princess returned her attention to the mask. Pulling the knife and pocketing it, she took the artifact and walked over to the fireplace, examining the fire burning the logs before throwing the mask in it. Zelda remained rooted to the spot, watching intently as the mask was slowly burned and turned into ashes.

Putting more logs in the fireplace to make sure the mask would be completely destroyed, Zelda said to the flames after she finished her task, "I'm no ordinary woman."

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**Note:** the reason why I didn't give the Duke a real face (like Vaati, as suggested by _IDon'tWantAUsername_) is because since the beginning he was like an OC to me. I was originally going to stick with the Happy Mask Salesman, but I decided otherwise. So, think of the Duke as an OC and mroe explanations are coming.


	12. What's Done Is Done

Hello guys! I'm sorry I'm posting this chapter a day later than usual, but last night I got into a sick fight with my bf and the typical teenage drama shit happened and I also caught a cold so I'm not going to write much today.

**- Guest Reviews**

___Zelink005:What an interesting plot twist ! :D The woman is taking control for once. That was awesome ! Keep it up._

I love portraying Zelda as a badass character, you have no idea. Thanks!  
**- end -**

Recently, I started taking a few drabble requests on tumblr; if you'd like, you can send me a prompt and I'll write something out of it. Please, stick to TP tho, it needs more love! **The links are in my profile page.**

That's it guys! Hope you like it and forgive me for doing what I did to Ilia! (I feel really bad!)

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**Chapter Twelve**

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It was no surprise for her to see Rusl standing at the doors of the throne room, not since she and Link returned from Termina. To her relief, Link was almost fully healed. The cuts and gashes were gone, though the nurses reported he still felt some pain on his stomach where the sword cut through. She almost cringed at the thought, but kept her composure and nodded her head, signaling the man to enter the room.

She half expected to see the kids trailing after him, accompanied by a girl she had never seen before. Her eyes were rimmed red, unshed tears making her green orbs glow under the light; the princess could see the girl's struggle to not cry before her and Zelda wished she could tell her to let it out or to remain calm.

Rising from the throne, Zelda smiled at the visitors and lightly shook her head when Rusl bowed. "Please stand, Rusl." She said as she motioned for him with her hand, "We do not need formalities in a time like this."

"Hopefully your speech will change too, Your Highness." He smiled and approached her, and added in a quieter tone, "Especially now that Link told me everything."

It seemed like the girl heard everything, even though his voice was quieter than a whisper. She sobbed, and Zelda kept her eyes focused on his face. It would be better if she avoided talking about or even mentioning Link around her; he seemed to be important to her in a romantic level. Zelda could only imagine if she was his first kiss, or if he was hers.

Taking a step back and motioning for the door, she said, "I'll accompany you to the infirmary." Quietly greeting the kids and the girl, she led them through the hallways.

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Link sighed into his pillow, feeling bored out of his mind. He was confined in that room since he rescued Zelda, or since she rescued him. He couldn't tell who saved who, only that they were both alive when they arrived at Hyrule Castle.

The doctors, mages and nurses worked hard to heal his wounded stomach, using healing waters imported from Death Mountain and potions elaborated by the best magicians in town. His torso was bandaged and he hardly felt any pain, only when he tried to bend forward on the bed. Link didn't know what happened to Zelda after she knocked him out. He only heard the nurses talking once, quietly and among themselves, that the doctors were putting a lot of effort into healing her, for her appearance should never be tainted by any scars or marks.

And she never visited him; not when he was awake, that is. Link felt her presence around, even when he was sleeping. Zelda would quietly walk in, at any time of the day, stand beside his bed without uttering a word. Occasionally, she'd let her fingers brush the back of his hand, but she never held it. And of course, Link wasn't stupid in the least; he usually faked naps, only to have her standing beside him. Her silence was comforting, just like her touch and her presence.

He found it amusing, too how everyone kept his face covered by a new dark gray hood. '_Must've been Zelda's orders'_, he mused to himself as he picked at the item of clothing idly. Link was sure she was the one who took off his hood and replaced it with this one. He took it off some nights ago and examined it; he made a mental note to ask Zelda what the symbols in the back meant, specially the weird looking eye.

There was a quiet rap on the door, one that Link couldn't associate with any of the nurses that visited him. He sat up slowly, pulled the hood over his head and told the person to enter. The first things he saw after the door opened were the kids hurrying to get inside and claim seats on his bedside. The second thing was Ilia entering quietly, head slightly bowed, never looking up as she stopped at the end of his bed. The third thing was Rusl, who stopped by the door; then Zelda came into his line of vision. She seemed fine, he realized, relief washing over him. Dark circles under her eyes aside, she seemed as healthy as she had always been.

"Hey, Link! Stop checking her out and give us some attention!" Link whipped his head towards Talo, glad that this time the hood was covering his burning face. He stole a quick glance at Zelda and found that she had turned her head a little to the left, cheeks lightly tainted pink.

She brought her gloved hand to her lips and tapped them twice, "I am going to leave you alone for a moment of privacy," Zelda said after a while with a smile.

"I was merely seeing if she was whole, Talo." Link grumbled after the doors were closed behind her back, pulling his hood down.

Talo grinned, "She did better than you, you know!" Beth snickered along with him, hiding her smile behind her hands. Link said nothing, merely reclined on the pillows behind his back.

Rusl approached the bed, arms crossed over his chest, "Link still didn't have the chance to talk to her, kids." He nodded at Talo, as if to emphasize what he was going to say, "She has yet to explain to him what happened, and how they got back to Hyrule."

"How was she when we arrived?"

The elder man scratched his chin, "We only received news about your whereabouts two, three days later. By the time we got here, her skin was nearly back to its normal color." Link's face scrunched up at the thought of her fair skin ruined by dark purple marks. "And she was bedridden for five days."

His eyebrows shot up, "What happened to her?"

"Got into a fight. Also got a few broken ribs."

Link breathed out heavily, and then covered his nose and mouth with the palms of his hands touching each other. "And the Duke?" He asked after a few seconds passed.

Rusl didn't hesitate to answer, "Dead." The assassin regarded him with such an expression that Rusl wondered if he had grown another head.

"She's pretty strong," Colin commented.

"I thought princesses were supposed to wait to be rescued, not save their rescuer." Talo said, no ill will meant.

Beth and Colin nodded at this; Link gaped at him for a few seconds. "She's..." he closed his eyes briefly, choosing the right words, "She's one of a kind."

"She's the one who injured your shoulder months ago, isn't she?" Beth inquired, peering at him with curious eyes.

He just smiled. Link was glad they weren't making a fuss about it. His status as an assassin was kept a secret from them; they were too young, the less they knew the better. At least now, they wouldn't need to come up with excuses as to why Link was missing from the village for a week, or why he got wounded when the only thing he had to do was send a letter to someone somewhere. But now he'd have to hide his weapons in high places where they could not reach; not even Hylia would know what Talo would do with the hidden blades.

_The hidden blades_, his eyes widened and Link started looking around the room frantically for them.

Rusl chuckled, "Your weapons are with Zelda." Ilia's quiet murmur was only heard by both older men in the room; the oldest chuckled to hide his discomfort and moved towards the door. "Kids, remember that she told you that she'd get some snack prepared? So, I think this is a great time for you to go and eat it."

"Nice! I'm so hungry!" Talo exclaimed and jumped off the bed. The kids promised they would return later and left the room excitedly, eager to see more of the castle again.

Once they were gone, Link turned to stare at Ilia, waiting for her to raise her head and meet his gaze. She didn't. He shifted in his seat, longing for a good walk around the castle; heck, even around the room would help. "What is it that you said?" He asked quietly, friendly, "Such intimacy, yes?"

Ilia turned her head away, still not meeting his eyes. "You've changed... Everyone has changed..."

"It's only natural, Ilia."

"No, it's not!" She flinched; clearly that's not how she wanted to react, she didn't want to start a fight. Ilia turned around and recoiled her shoulders, "Even your speech has changed. You've been spending too much time in Castle Town. I can't say you're from Ordon anymore."

Link frowned at that, "Don't say that, my roots are there, I've grown up there."

She whirled around, voice getting higher, "Yes, but what will you do now? You clearly don't have plans on returning to Ordon!"

Pressing his lips together and exhaling through his nose, the assassin rubbed his temples. "Ilia, you can't deny the fact that Ordon's blood don't run in my veins, but it is my home." He shrugged his shoulders to release the tension in his muscles, "I will return."

Ilia wiped her face viciously, "You won't", and she said brokenly between sobs, "no one can keep you in a bed for two days straight, I can only imagine how you managed to stay quiet for two weeks..." Link didn't lower his head, but he averted his gaze, and she saw it. "Is it true what Rusl said?"

"I don't know," he started slowly. He didn't want to hurt her, he had an idea of what it could be, but Link wasn't completely sure. No one from Ordon knew of their kiss and the words they shared in secret; Talo joked and teased, which is normal for a kid. Rusl is usually very perceptive, but both Zelda and Link himself spent little time together in his presence. "What did he say?"

When she took longer than expected to answer, he decided to look at her, regretting it instantly. Fresh tears rolled down her cheeks, her green eyes were glossy and focused on his face, waiting for him to answer – preferably, waiting for him to deny it. With a defeated sigh he replied, "It's true." Link heard as she choked on a sob, "We're together."

"She... She doesn't even visit you, Link...!" She whispered meekly, sniffing every few words, "How... How is she good for you?"

Link reclined on the pillows again, "We're very secretive about this." He folded his hands together above his stomach, "Imagine how the people will react. The princess and an assassin. The very same assassin who killed her father."

Ilia closed her eyes and turned slightly away, hands caressing her brow. "I've never liked it..." She murmured, tilting her head in his direction, "I never wanted you to accept it... To be an assassin..."

He wanted to say something, anything. _'What's done is done'_, he thought bitterly; he wished to say that to her, and yet he couldn't, he wouldn't. That would only support her theories (that were actually facts) that he had changed from spending so much time around the Princess of Hyrule. But what could he do? He was trained for that! Link cleared his throat and said, "I'm sorry I can't fulfill your fantasies."

"No, Link," he braced himself for the words that were to come, for he knew they would be painful to hear, "I'm sorry I'm not good enough to be in yours."

With a sigh, he leaned forward again, brow furrowing as he met her eyes. "This is not about money. Titles, possessions, wealth, nothing of it matters."

"Do feelings matter?" Ilia countered, defiantly stepping forward, "Do they, Link?"

Link pressed his lips together and stared at her for a long moment in silence. "I'm not gonna discuss this with you."

"Running away?!" She accused, her little hands balling into fists.

"No, I am not running away!" His tone was firm, strong, Ilia felt like she could feel the vibration of his voice. She fell silent, eyes widening as he leaned even more forward, before he flinched and recoiled away, hands on his stomach. "You just can't seem to understand. Look, I'm sorry, but nothing's written on stone. I know you like me and I wouldn't mind spending the rest of my life with you, but the winds have blown another way, my boat has sailed away and reached another land." Link took in a deep breath while he leaned back on the pillows again, pulling the hood over his head and hiding his face. "What's done is done." He finally said, already feeling bad for treating her in that way, but what else could he do? She didn't seem to understand that he never promised anything, he had never once shown anything more than friendly attraction towards her. "I can't go back now, I can't just forget I'm an assassin, I can't leave this life behind."

He turned his head away and tried to drown out the sound of her sobs. Going back wasn't an option, everyone knew it.


	13. Important Notice tbd

GUYS

My laptop died, but don't worry, they're fixing it.

Well, actually, yes, get a little worried; there is the possibility that I'll lose all my stories and, if i do, I will have to write it again.

If I don't, I promise I'll post the next chapter tomorrow (probably when I'll get my laptop back)

Meanwhile, I'm here writing small drabbles and independent stories.

Stay safe!


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